Basketball Game Preview: Sierra Vista Mountain Lions vs. Western Warriors

Two dominant guards in Donnayja Gibson and Laila Lwaba are getting ready to go toe-to-toe. The Sierra Vista Mountain Lions will head out to take on the Western Warriors at 5:00 p.m. on Thursday. Sierra Vista is strutting in with some offensive muscle as they've averaged 51.9 points per game this season.

Western is hoping to do what Rancho couldn't on Tuesday: put an end to Sierra Vista's winning streak, which now stands at three games. Sierra Vista came out on top against Rancho by a score of 56-44.

Sierra Vista relied on the efforts of Gibson, who went 7 of 16 en route to 16 points along with five boards and four steals, and Avery Silvas, who dropped a double-double on 12 points and 12 boards. Gibson's evening made it three games in a row in which she has scored at least ten points. The team also got some help courtesy of Bella Concerios, who posted 11 points.

Sierra Vista smashed the offensive glass and finished the game with 11 offensive boards. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now pulled down at least eight offensive rebounds in four consecutive contests.

Meanwhile, Western and Southeast Career Tech faced off in a cross-town battle on Tuesday. Western managed a 44-39 victory over Southeast Career Tech. The win made it back-to-back victories for the Warriors.

Western pushed their record up to 8-6 with the win, which was their third straight on the road. Those victories came thanks to their offensive performance across that stretch, as they averaged 52.3 points per game. As for Sierra Vista, they have been performing well recently as they've won four of their last five matches, which provided a nice bump to their 10-6 record this season.

Sierra Vista beat Western 44-32 in their previous matchup back in February of 2024. Will Sierra Vista repeat their success, or does Western have a new game plan this time around? We'll find out soon enough.