Basketball Recap: Merced Now 4-1 over Last Five Games

Aiden Matsuo

Steals

01/02/25 @ Sonora	3
12/30/24 vs West	2
12/28/24 @ Clovis	4
12/27/24 vs Pleasant Grove	3

Sonora came into Thursday's match looking for another win against Merced, but Aiden Matsuo wouldn't allow it. The Merced Bears managed a 53-49 victory over the Sonora Wildcats on Thursday thanks in part to Matsuo, who went 7 of 9 on his way to 18 points along with seven boards and three steals. He has been hot recently, having posted two or more steals the last four times he's played.

Sonora's defeat came despite a true team effort from the offense, with many players turning in solid performances. Perhaps the best among them was Luke Otterson, who made all 6 shots he took to post 12 points and four steals. The team also got some help courtesy of Eli Ingalls, who went 5 of 7 on his way to 11 points and seven rebounds.

Merced has been performing well recently as they've won four of their last five contests, which provided a massive bump to their 9-7 record this season. As for Sonora, they are on a three-game losing streak that has dropped them down to 8-6.

Merced and Bear Creek will meet on Tuesday for a tough Bear Battle. Bear Creek knows how to get points on the board -- the team has finished with 55 points or more in their past nine games -- so hopefully Merced likes a good challenge. As for Sonora, they didn't take long to hit the court again: they've already played their next match, a 78-57 win against Livingston on the 3rd.