Basketball Game Preview: Calaveras Red Hawks vs. Granite Bay Grizzlies

The Calaveras Red Hawks will take on the Granite Bay Grizzlies in a tournament on Friday. Both teams are coming into the matchup red-hot, with Calaveras sitting on three straight wins and Granite Bay on four.

Last Friday, the stars were shining brightly for Calaveras in a 57-42 victory over Oakdale.

Makenna Neelans and Mariah Maddock were among the main playmakers for Calaveras as the former went 8 of 17 on her way to 17 points in addition to seven steals and five assists and the latter posted 13 points along with eight rebounds and six assists. Maddock has been hot, having also posted two or more steals the last five times she's played. Another player making a difference was Kendra Baechler, who put up eight points in addition to seven boards and three steals.

Calaveras smashed the offensive glass and finished the game with 22 offensive boards. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now pulled down at least 12 offensive boards in seven consecutive contests.

Meanwhile, a well-balanced attack led Granite Bay over Center in every quarter on their way to victory on Saturday. Given that consistent dominance, it should come as no surprise that Granite Bay blew Center out of the water with a 52-25 final score. The game marked the Grizzlies' most dominant win of the season so far.

Calaveras' victory was their sixth straight at home dating back to last season, which pushed their record up to 9-3. The wins came thanks to their offensive performance across that stretch, as they averaged 57.5 points per game. As for Granite Bay, they have been performing well recently as they've won five of their last six matches, which provided a massive bump to their 5-4 record this season.

Calaveras beat Granite Bay 52-44 when the teams last played back in December of 2022. One of the biggest obstacles trying to stand in the way of that victory was Granite Bay's Madyson Wright, who went 10 of 19 on her way to 26 points and five rebounds. Now that she won't be playing on Friday, will it be easier for Calaveras to walk away with another win? There's only one way to find out.