This season hasn't been kind to the Highland Rams, who are still winless after their 15th matchup. They took a 43-35 hit to the loss column at the hands of Alta on Friday. While losing is never fun, Highland can't take it too hard given the team's big disadvantage in MaxPreps' Utah basketball rankings (they are ranked 100th, while the Hawks are ranked 24th).
When it comes to explaining why Highland lost, one person who can't be blamed is Danae Asiata. Despite the final result, she scored 17 points. That was a full 48.6% of Highland's points, marking the third time in a row she's earned more than a third of the team's points.
Highland struggled to work together and finished the game with only an assist. They were crushed by their opponents in that department as Alta racked up ten assists.
Leafa Niumeitolu continued her habit of posting crazy stat lines for Alta, dropping a double-double on 13 points and ten rebounds. Aolele Liavaa was another key contributor, scoring eight points along with four steals.
Highland's defeat was their sixth straight on the road, which dropped their record down to 0-15. As for Alta, the victory was the 11th in a row for them, bringing their record for this year to 17-2.
Both squads will have to hit the road in their upcoming games. Highland will be staying on the road on Tuesday to face off against the Leopards at 5:15 p.m. on February 6th. East is coming into the match on a five-game losing streak. As for Alta, they will head out on the road to face off against the Panthers at 7:00 p.m. on Tuesday. Hopefully West focused on turnovers this week since the team gave up 14 on Friday.
