The Valhalla Norsemen will head out on the road to face off against the Southwest SD Raiders at 7:00 p.m. on Tuesday. Expect the scorekeeper to be kept busy: if their previous games are any indication, the two teams will really light up the scoreboard.
Valhalla has made a habit of sweeping their opponents off the court, having now won three matches by 24 points or more this season. They took their contest at home on Saturday with ease, bagging a 58-4 victory over Foothills Christian. Given Valhalla's advantage in MaxPreps' California basketball rankings (they are ranked 319th, while Foothills Christian is ranked 993rd), the result wasn't entirely unexpected.
Valhalla can attribute much of their success to Ava Miles, who scored 26 points along with 4 steals. That makes it two consecutive games in which Miles has scored at least 25% of Valhalla's points. Alonna Bush was another key contributor, scoring 10 points along with 8 steals.
Meanwhile, Southwest SD waltzed into Saturday's matchup with three straight wins but they left with four. They blew past Orange Glen 56-30. The score was close at the half, but Southwest SD pulled away in the second half with 41 points.
Southwest SD found their leader in underclassman Pilar Carrera, who scored 30 points along with 6 rebounds. The match was Carrera's fourth in a row with at least ten points. The team also got some help courtesy of Jazlyn Martinez, who scored 9 points along with 5 steals.
Their wins bumped Valhalla to 6-2 and Foothills Christian to 1-3.
This contest is one where the number of possessions is likely to be a big factor: Valhalla have been smashing the glass this season, having averaged 38.2 rebounds per game. However, it's not like Southwest SD struggles in that department as they've been averaging 13.4 per game. Given these competing strengths, it'll be interesting to see how their clash plays out. Check MaxPreps after the action for a full breakdown of the game and more basketball content.
Everything came up roses for Valhalla against Southwest SD in their previous matchup back in January as the squad secured a 56-17 win. The rematch might be a little tougher for Valhalla since the team won't have the home-court advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.
