Basketball Game Preview: Clovis West Golden Eagles vs. Central Grizzlies

Clovis West is 10-0 against Central since January of 2020 and they'll have a chance to extend that success on Friday. The Clovis West Golden Eagles will look to defend their home court against the Central Grizzlies at 6:30 p.m. Expect the scorekeeper to be kept busy: if their previous games are any indication, both will really light up the scoreboard.

Clovis West is headed into the game having just suffered their biggest loss since December 18, 2024 on Wednesday. They were outmatched by St. Joseph and fell 96-67. While losing is never fun, the Golden Eagles can't take it too hard given the team's big disadvantage in MaxPreps' California basketball rankings (they are ranked 162nd, while the Knights are ranked sixth).

Despite the defeat, Clovis West got top-tier performance from Dj Stickman, who dropped a double-double on 30 points and 12 boards. The contest was Stickman's third in a row with at least ten points. Jace Kellogg was another key player, going 6 of 14 on his way to 14 points and seven assists.

Meanwhile, Central entered their tilt with Justin Garza on Saturday with two consecutive wins but they'll enter their next game with three. They greeted the New Year with with a 62-46 victory over the Guardians.

Central's win came from a few key players Clovis West will need to keep an eye on. One of the most notable was Sier Harbin, who went 7 of 12 on his way to 15 points along with five rebounds and three steals. The team also got some help courtesy of Gerald Perry, who went 8 of 16 on his way to 20 points and seven rebounds.

Central has been performing incredibly well recently as they've won seven of their last eight matches, which provided a nice bump to their 13-5 record this season. Those victories came thanks to their offensive performance across that stretch, as they averaged 59.6 points per game. As for Clovis West, their loss dropped their record down to 7-11.

Everything came up roses for Clovis West against Central in their previous matchup back in January of 2024, as the squad secured a 90-43 win. In that game, Clovis West amassed a halftime lead of 42-19, an impressive feat they'll look to repeat on Friday.