Two dominant forwards in Madi Hatfield and Nenah Brown are getting ready to go toe-to-toe. The Anthem Prep Eagles will take on the Rancho Solano Prep Mustangs at 5:30 p.m. on Tuesday. The two teams each escaped (but just barely!) with wins against their previous opponents.
Anthem Prep will head into Monday's contest hoping to keep the good times rolling: they proved they can win big back in December of 2024 (they won by 34) and back in December of 2024 they proved they can win the close ones too. They came out on top in a nail-biter against Red Rock, sneaking past 29-27.
| 12/16/24 vs Red Rock | 11 |
| 01/18/24 vs North Phoenix Preparatory Academy | 8 |
| 01/29/24 @ North Valley Christian Academy | 7 |
| 01/11/24 vs Bagdad | 5 |
| 01/22/24 vs Antelope | 5 |
Anthem Prep's victory was a true team effort, with many players turning in solid performances. Perhaps the best among them was Bella Hall, who posted 11 points in addition to six rebounds and five steals. The dominant performance gave Hall a new career-high in points. The team also got some help courtesy of Hatfield, who put up eight points along with 11 boards and three steals.
Anthem Prep smashed the offensive glass and finished the game with 17 offensive boards. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now pulled down at least nine offensive rebounds in 22 consecutive matchups dating back to last season.
Meanwhile, it was close, but on Monday Rancho Solano Prep sidestepped Dixon for a 32-30 win. Given the Mustangs' advantage in MaxPreps' basketball rankings in their respective home states (they are ranked 142nd in Arizona, while the Rams are ranked 847th in California), the result wasn't entirely unexpected.
Rancho Solano Prep's win came from a few key players Anthem Prep will need to keep an eye on. One of the most notable was Heidi Iancu, who had 12 points.
Rancho Solano Prep's victory bumped their record up to 9-5. As for Anthem Prep, their win bumped their record up to 4-2.
Rebounding is likely to be a big factor in this contest: Anthem Prep has crashing the boards this season, having averaged 36.7 rebounds per game. However, it's not like Rancho Solano Prep struggles in that department as they've been averaging 33.8 boards. With both teams battling to corral missed shots, we'll see if one team can grab an edge.
Everything came up roses for Anthem Prep against Rancho Solano Prep in their previous meeting back in December of 2015, as the team secured a 69-21 victory. In that game, Anthem Prep amassed a halftime lead of 45-6, an impressive feat they'll look to repeat on Tuesday.
