The Pinnacle Pioneers's five-game losing streak came to an end on Tuesday. They strolled past Mesa with points to spare, taking the game 65-51. This was payback for Pinnacle, who suffered a 64-54 defeat the last time these two teams met.
Pinnacle's victory was a true team effort, with many players turning in solid performances. Perhaps the best among them was Braylon Johnson, who scored 19 points along with five rebounds and two steals. That's the first time this season that Johnson grabbed two or more steals. Domonic Okeke was another key contributor, dropping a double-double on 14 points and ten rebounds.
Several Jackrabbits players turned in solid performances, despite ultimately coming up short. Perhaps the best among those players was Anthony Seumanu, who scored 17 points. Another player making a difference was John Petersen, who scored ten points.
Pinnacle pushed their record up to 10-7 with that win, which was their fifth straight at home. Those victories were due in large part to their offensive dominance across that stretch, as they averaged 84.0 points per game. As for Mesa, this is the second loss in a row for them and nudges their season record down to 12-5.
Pinnacle will look to defend their home court on Friday against Sunnyslope at 7:00 p.m. Sunnyslope is coming into the contest hot, having won their last five games. Mesa on the road again on Friday and play against Red Mountain at 7:00 p.m. on January 12th. Red Mountain will have to bring their A-game into this one, as they are staring down a pretty big deficit in the MaxPreps Arizona Rankings (they are ranked 133rd, while Mesa is ranked 29th).
