Sierra has enjoyed the comforts of home their last four games, but now they'll head out on the road. They will square off against the Manteca Buffaloes at 7:00 p.m. on Tuesday. Sierra will have to bring their A-game into this one, as they are staring down a pretty big deficit in the MaxPreps California Rankings (they are ranked 452nd, while the Buffaloes are ranked 135th).
Sierra struggled with three-point shooting accuracy on Thursday (the Jaguars were 30% better) and sadly the final score reflected it. Sierra took a 54-44 hit to the loss column at the hands of the Jaguars.
Even though the team lost, they still had their share of impressive performances. One of the best came from Mya Everett, who scored 13 points along with eight rebounds. The team also got some help courtesy of Emma Gilmore, who scored seven points along with eight rebounds and three steals.
Meanwhile, Manteca got the win against the Mustangs on Thursday by a conclusive 50-30. The victory was just what Manteca needed coming off of a 92-34 defeat in their prior matchup.
Manteca's win was the result of several impressive offensive performances. One of the most notable came from Izabella Sanchez, who scored 14 points along with five rebounds and four steals. Michailla Springs was another key contributor, scoring 15 points.
Sierra's loss dropped their record down to 14-12. As for Manteca, they have been performing incredibly well recently as they've won six of their last seven matches, which provided a nice bump to their 22-5 record this season.
Tuesday's contest will pit two of the most dominant guards against one another: Gilmore and Jada Ikharo. Gilmore has been dynamite this season: she has averaged 11.8 points, 4.1 steals, and 1.4 blocks. For her part, Ikharo has averaged 13.3 points, 3.6 steals, and 8.1 rebounds.
Sierra couldn't quite finish off the Buffaloes in their previous matchup back in January and fell 55-53. A big factor in that loss was the dominant performance of Ikharo, who scored 22 points along with eight rebounds and eight steals. Now that Sierra knows the damage she can cause, will they be able to stop her this time? There's only one way to find out.
