The Rocky Mountain Grizzlies will square off against the Middleton Vikings at 7:30 p.m. on Saturday. Each of these teams will be fighting to keep a win streak alive as Rocky Mountain comes in on four and the Vikings on 16.
Last Thursday, Rocky Mountain faced the Wolves in a battle between two of the state's top teams. Rocky Mountain had just enough and edged the Wolves out 44-42.
Logan Sailors and Anna Dabell were among the main playmakers for Rocky Mountain as the former scored 14 points along with two steals and the latter almost dropped a double-double on 19 points and nine rebounds. Dabell hasn't dropped below eight rebounds for four straight games.
Meanwhile, Middleton had already proven themselves in the regular season, and didn't miss a beat now that it's playoff time. They came out on top against Borah by a score of 49-40 on Thursday.
Middleton found their leader in underclassman Miley Steele, who dropped a double-double on 20 points and 11 rebounds. As a matter of fact, that's the most points Steele has scored all season. Zoey Blackwell was another key contributor, scoring ten points along with eight rebounds and five assists.
Rocky Mountain's win bumped their record up to 16-5. As for Middleton, their win bumped their record up to 19-3.
This contest is one where the number of possessions is likely to be a big factor: Rocky Mountain have been smashing the glass this season, having averaged 25.8 rebounds per game. However, it's not like Middleton struggles in that department as they've been averaging 28.1 rebounds per game. Given these competing strengths, it'll be interesting to see how their clash plays out.
Rocky Mountain came up short against the Vikings in their previous meeting back in January, falling 59-53. A big factor in that loss was the dominant performance of Middleton's Aysha Fried, who dropped a double-double on 13 points and ten rebounds. Now that Rocky Mountain knows the damage she can cause, will they be able to stop her this time? Check MaxPreps.com after the match to find out.
