The Pioneer Diamondbacks won the last time they faced the Pharr-San Juan-Alamo Southwest Javelinas, and things went their way on Tuesday too. Pioneer put the hurt on the Javelinas with a sharp 68-44 victory. Given Pioneer's advantage in MaxPreps' Texas basketball rankings (they are ranked 617th, while the Javelinas are ranked 1547th), the result wasn't entirely unexpected.
Pioneer was led to victory by Julian Valdez and Edward Chavez. Valdez scored 12 points along with four steals, while Chavez scored 17 points along with four steals. Chavez has been hot recently, having posted two or more steals the last four times he's played. Matthew Maldonado was another key contributor, scoring nine points along with six assists.
Pioneer has been performing well recently as they've won six of their last eight games, which provided a nice bump to their 18-12 record this season. As for Pharr-San Juan-Alamo Southwest, they are on a ten-game losing streak that has dropped them down to 2-21.
Pioneer will be playing at home against the Sabercats at 7:30 p.m. on Friday. Vela knows how to get points on the board -- the squad has finished with flashy point totals in its past eight matches -- so hopefully the Diamondbacks likes a good challenge. As for Pharr-San Juan-Alamo Southwest, they will head out on the road to take on the Wolverines at 7:30 p.m. on Friday. Pharr-San Juan-Alamo Memorial is coming into the match on a five-game losing streak.
