Even though the North Hollywood Huskies scored an imposing 55 points on Friday, the Verdugo Hills Dons still came out on top. Verdugo Hills enjoyed a cozy 71-55 win over North Hollywood. Given Verdugo Hills' advantage in MaxPreps' California basketball rankings (they are ranked 368th, while North Hollywood is ranked 842nd), the result wasn't entirely unexpected.
Verdugo Hills' win was the result of several impressive offensive performances. One of the most notable came from Alexander Martinez, who scored 22 points along with seven rebounds and three steals. Martinez hasn't dropped below two steals for five straight games. Another player making a difference was Georges Abdulnour, who dropped a double-double on 19 points and ten rebounds.
North Hollywood's loss came despite strong showings from Jayson Cooper and Lucas Gonzales. Cooper dropped a double-double on 17 points and 12 rebounds, while Gonzales scored 17 points along with six rebounds and two steals. Gonzales is trending in the right direction, as he's improved his point production for four games straight. The team also got some help courtesy of Alexander Espinoza, who scored six points along with four steals.
North Hollywood's lineup was just a bit different on Friday as Gonzales got a bit more time on the court (27 vs. his season average of 13.75). Gonzales made the most of the opportunity, scoring 17 points along with six rebounds and two steals. A few more games like that and he might be seeing even more time going forward.
Verdugo Hills is on a roll lately: they've won five of their last six matchups, which provided a nice bump to their 17-11 record this season. As for North Hollywood, they are on a three-game losing streak that has dropped them down to 9-19.
Verdugo Hills will be playing at home against Dorsey at 7:00 p.m. on Friday. Averaging 62.14 points so far this season, Verdugo Hills' high-powered offense has been in full-swing lately, so Dorsey better be ready for a challenge. North Hollywood is on the road again on Friday and plays Roosevelt at 7:00 p.m. on February 9th. North Hollywood is strutting with some offensive muscle, as they've averaged 54 points per game this season.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
