Two dominant guards in Ethan Berninger and Tevin Riehl are getting ready to go toe-to-toe. The Dakota Ridge Eagles will take on the Mesa Ridge Grizzlies at 5:30 p.m. on Friday. Dakota Ridge has been dominant on offense recently, as they've racked up an incredible 361 points over their last five matchups.
Two teams were on the hunt for playoff glory, but only Dakota Ridge walked away with it. They enjoyed a cozy 75-61 victory over the Raptors on Saturday. Having run the score up that high, both teams might be doing some extra defensive drills very soon.
Multiple players turned in solid performances to lead Dakota Ridge to victory, but perhaps none more so than Andrew Schneider, who scored 20 points along with two steals. Another player making a difference was Nathan Esau, who scored 15 points along with two steals.
Meanwhile, Mesa Ridge entered their tilt with Green Mountain with 18 consecutive wins but they'll enter their next game with 19. Mesa Ridge secured a 65-59 W over Green Mountain on Saturday. Given Mesa Ridge's advantage in MaxPreps' Colorado basketball rankings (they are ranked 18th, while Green Mountain is ranked 61st), the result wasn't entirely unexpected.
It was another big night for Riehl, who scored 24 points along with three steals. He has been hot recently, having posted three or more steals the last five times he's played. Bryce Riehl was another key contributor, scoring 14 points along with six rebounds.
Dakota Ridge has been performing well recently as they've won 14 of their last 17 games, which provided a nice bump to their 18-7 record this season. Mesa Ridge's record now sits at 23-2.
Some high-performance offense is likely on the agenda as the pair are some of the highest scoring teams in the league. Dakota Ridge hasn't had any problem running up the score this season, having averaged 67.7 points per game. However, it's not like Mesa Ridge struggles in that department as they've been averaging 67.8 points per game. With both teams so easily able to put up points, the only question left is who can run the score up higher.
Dakota Ridge came up short against Mesa Ridge when the teams last played back in March of 2023, falling 65-55. Can Dakota Ridge avenge their loss or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
