If the Elizabeth Cardinals were feeling good off their 77-30 takedown of the Mitchell Marauders last Tuesday, their most recent game may have dampened their spirits a bit. Elizabeth fell just short of Sierra by a score of 45-43. While losing is never fun, Elizabeth can't take it too hard given the team's big disadvantage in MaxPreps' Colorado basketball rankings (they are ranked 267th, while Sierra is ranked 99th).
Despite the loss, Elizabeth still got an impressive performance from Cooper Connelley, who scored 14 points along with eight rebounds and two steals. Connelley is on a roll when it comes to steals, as he's now grabbed two or more in the last five games he's played. The team also got some help courtesy of Diessen Lindsay, who scored eight points along with six rebounds and five steals.
Even though they lost, Elizabeth were working as a unit and finished the game with ten assists. This was only their 13th loss (out of 17 games) when they've passed the ball that well.
Sierra's win on Thursday was the result of several impressive offensive performances. One of the most notable came from Xavier Burns, who dropped a double-double on 11 points and 14 rebounds. Burns also posted two blocks for the first time this season. Torren Stewart was another key contributor, scoring 16 points.
Elizabeth's defeat was their fourth straight at home, which dropped their record down to 4-17. Those losses can't be blamed on the team's offensive performance across that stretch, as they averaged 52.0 points per game. As for Sierra, they are on a roll lately: they've won six of their last eight matches, which provided a nice bump to their 14-7 record this season.
Elizabeth will head out on the road to square off against Falcon at 7:00 p.m. on Monday. Falcon is strutting with some offensive muscle, as they've averaged 64.8 points per game this season. As for Sierra, they will be playing at home against Mitchell at 7:00 p.m. on Monday. Sierra is facing Mitchell at the right time seeing as Mitchell is stuck on a 20-game losing streak.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
