The Paso Robles Bearcats will head out on the road to take on the Orcutt Academy Spartans at 5:30 p.m. on Wednesday.
Paso Robles' tournament run continued when they took on Cabrillo last Saturday. Paso Robles fell just short of Cabrillo by a score of 39-37. That's two games in a row now that the Bearcats have lost by exactly two points.
Meanwhile, Orcutt Academy didn't have too much trouble with El Diamante last Saturday as they won 67-52. Given the Spartans' advantage in MaxPreps' California basketball rankings (they are ranked 100th, while the Miners are ranked 266th), the result wasn't entirely unexpected.
Paso Robles better keep an eye on Elizabeth Johnson. She was instrumental in Orcutt Academy's win, dropping a double-double on 35 points and 20 boards. That makes it three consecutive games in which Johnson has scored at least a third of Orcutt Academy's points. Another player making a difference was Iraya Bell-Jackson, who posted nine points in addition to seven boards and three steals.
Orcutt Academy smashed the offensive glass and finished the game with 18 offensive boards. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now pulled down at least ten offensive rebounds in 21 consecutive matchups dating back to last season.
Orcutt Academy is on a roll lately: they've won eight of their last nine games, which provided a nice bump to their 11-2 record this season. As for Paso Robles, their loss dropped their record down to 7-7.
Paso Robles barely slipped by Orcutt Academy when the teams last played back in January of 2024, winning 56-55. One of the biggest obstacles the team faced in that game was Johnson, who dropped a double-double on 31 points and 13 rebounds. Now that she's got a second chance to win this matchup, will Paso Robles still be able to contain Johnson? Check MaxPreps.com after the match to find out.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
