The Valparaiso Vikings and the Northridge Raiders will face off at 7:00 p.m. on February 10th without much rest after finishing up games yesterday. Each of these teams will be fighting to keep a win streak alive as Valparaiso comes in on five and Northridge on four.
Two teams were on the hunt for playoff glory, but only Valparaiso walked away with it. They walked away with a 41-28 win over the Bulldogs on Saturday.
Valparaiso's win was the result of several impressive offensive performances. One of the most notable came from Becca Gerdt, who almost dropped a double-double on 13 points and nine rebounds. Gerdt is on a roll when it comes to steals, as she's now grabbed two or more in the last six games she's played. Another player making a difference was Lillian Barnes, who scored 15 points along with seven rebounds and five assists.
Meanwhile, winning is just a little bit easier when your three-point shooting is a whole 32% better than the opposition, a fact Northridge proved on Saturday. They strolled past Penn with points to spare, taking the game 53-37.
Northridge got their win on the backs of several key players, but it was Lily Scholl out in front who scored 12 points along with six rebounds and three steals. The team also got some help courtesy of Rielyn Goodwin, who scored 16 points.
Valparaiso is on a roll lately: they've won eight of their last nine games, which provided a nice bump to their 18-7 record this season. As for Northridge, they pushed their record up to 24-3 with that win, which was their 16th straight at home.
Saturday's matchup is one where the number of possessions is likely to be a big factor: Valparaiso have been smashing the glass this season, having averaged 27 rebounds per game. However, it's not like Northridge struggles in that department as they've been averaging 26 rebounds per game. Given these competing strengths, it'll be interesting to see how their clash plays out. Come back here after the game to get an analysis of the match and other basketball content.