Cherokee Trail is 0-4 against Regis Jesuit since December of 2016 but things could change on Saturday. After both having extra time off, both will shake off the cobwebs and take on one another at 7:00 p.m. Keep an eye on the score for this one: the two teams posted some lofty point totals in their previous games.
Cherokee Trail picked up another tournament win last Saturday. They sure made it a nail-biter, but they managed to escape with a 70-67 win over Victory Christian Academy. Given the Cougars' advantage in MaxPreps' basketball rankings in their respective home states (they are ranked 97th in Colorado, while the Knights are ranked 411th in California), the result wasn't entirely unexpected.
| 12/21/24 vs Victory Christian Academy | 6 |
| 12/20/24 vs Benicia | 2 |
| 12/06/24 vs Golden | 2 |
| 12/05/24 @ Arvada West | 2 |
| 12/18/24 vs Del Norte | 1 |
Multiple players turned in solid performances to lead Cherokee Trail to victory, but perhaps none more so than Nathan Baack, who posted 15 points along with six assists and six boards. The dominant performance gave Baack a new career-high in assists. The team also got some help courtesy of Caleb Jensen, who almost dropped a double-double on 13 points and nine boards.
Cherokee Trail smashed the offensive glass and finished the game with 13 offensive rebounds. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now pulled down at least eight offensive boards in three consecutive matches.
Meanwhile, there's no place like home for Regis Jesuit, who bounced back after a loss on the road back in December of 2024. They strolled past Denver East with points to spare two weeks ago, taking the game 72-55.
Cherokee Trail better keep an eye on Eric Fiedler. He was instrumental in Regis Jesuit's win, going 9 of 22 on his way to 30 points and eight rebounds. Fiedler's evening made it six games in a row in which he has scored at least ten points. The team also got some help courtesy of Lucas Dickinson, who dropped a double-double on 13 points and 12 rebounds.
Regis Jesuit's victory was their eighth straight at home dating back to last season, which pushed their record up to 5-2. Those victories came thanks to their offensive performance across that stretch, as they averaged 72.5 points per game. As for Cherokee Trail, the win got them back to even at 5-5.
Some high-performance offense is likely on the agenda as Cherokee Trail and Regis Jesuit are some of the highest scoring teams in the league. Cherokee Trail hasn't had any problem running up the score this season, having averaged 62.1 points per game. However, it's not like Regis Jesuit struggles in that department as they've been averaging 66.3 points. With both teams so easily able to put up points, the only question left is who can run the score up higher.
Cherokee Trail came up short against Regis Jesuit when the teams last played back in December of 2023, falling 66-54. A big factor in that loss was the dominant performance of Fiedler, who almost dropped a double-double on 25 points and nine rebounds. Now that Cherokee Trail knows the damage he can cause, will they be able to stop him this time? There's only one way to find out.
