After both having extra time off, the Greeley Central Wildcats and the Loveland Red Wolves will dust off their jerseys to take on one another at 1:00 p.m. on Saturday. The teams are rolling into the game with opposing streaks: Greeley Central has struggled recently with three defeats in a row, while Loveland will arrive with six straight victories.
Greeley Central lost 74-54 to Berthoud two weeks ago.
| 12/20/24 @ Berthoud | 26 |
| 12/17/24 vs Thompson Valley | 17 |
| 12/07/24 vs Pomona | 14 |
| 12/06/24 vs Montbello | 13 |
| 12/04/24 @ Northglenn | 11 |
Greeley Central might have lost, but man, Daniel Martinez was a machine: he went 9 of 21 on his way to 26 points and six steals. With that strong performance, Martinez is now averaging an impressive 16.2 points per game. The team also got some help courtesy of Hunter Wilke, who went 5 of 10 on his way to 11 points.
Meanwhile, winning is always nice, but doing so behind a season-high score is even better (just ask Loveland). They blew past Mountain View 82-52 two weeks ago. The Red Wolves have made a habit of sweeping their opponents off the court, having now won three matchups by 30 points or more this season.
Loveland had a senior duo take command as Nic Rakowsky went 5 of 8 on his way to 16 points along with five assists and three steals and Zayne Desouza dropped a double-double on 17 points and 13 boards. As a matter of fact, that's the most points Rakowsky has scored all season. The team also got some help courtesy of Jax Poole, who posted eight points and six assists.
Loveland was working as a unit and finished the game with 24 assists. That's the most assists they've managed all season.
Loveland's win was their third straight at home, which pushed their record up to 6-1. Those victories came thanks to their offensive performance across that stretch, as they averaged 70.3 points per game. As for Greeley Central, their loss dropped their record down to 1-4.
Rebounding is likely to be a big factor in this contest: Greeley Central has been smashing the glass this season, having averaged 28.4 boards per game. However, it's not like Loveland struggles in that department as they've been averaging 33.6 boards. With both teams battling to corral missed shots, we'll see if one team can grab an edge.
Greeley Central beat Loveland 58-45 in their previous meeting back in December of 2021. The rematch might be a little tougher for Greeley Central since the squad won't have the home-court advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.
