The Marana Tigers's recent rough patch got a bit rougher on Wednesday after their fourth straight loss. They suffered a rough 77-53 defeat at the hands of American Leadership Academy - Gilbert North. While losing is never fun, Marana can't take it too hard given the team's big disadvantage in MaxPreps' Arizona basketball rankings (they are ranked 230th, while American Leadership Academy - Gilbert North is ranked 28th).
American Leadership Academy - Gilbert North was led to victory by Owen Bell and Dylan Novak. Bell dropped a double-double on 16 points and ten rebounds, while Novak scored 15 points along with eight assists and seven rebounds. That's the first time this season that Bell pulled down eight or more rebounds. Another player making a difference was Cezer Sotomayor, who scored 12 points.
Marana dropped their record down to 5-16 with that defeat, which was their tenth straight on the road dating back to last season. That rough patch can't be blamed on the team's offensive performance across that stretch, as they averaged 60.1 points per game. As for American Leadership Academy - Gilbert North, they have been performing incredibly well recently as they've won ten of their last 11 contests, which provided a nice bump to their 15-4 record this season.
Both teams will have to hit the road in their upcoming games. Marana won't have much time to rest: their next matchup is against Tucson High Magnet School at 7:00 p.m. on January 25th. Tucson High Magnet School will be looking to extend their current 16-game winning streak. As for American Leadership Academy - Gilbert North, they will head out on the road to face off against Poston Butte at 7:00 p.m. on Friday. That game will pit two of the most dominant guards against one another: Dutch Martinez and Novak.
