The Edinburg Bobcats will head out on the road to square off against the Edinburg North Cougars at 7:30 p.m. on Friday. Edinburg is looking to tack on another W to their three-game streak on the road.
After soaring to a 28-point victory in their last game, Edinburg came back down to earth on Tuesday. They fell just short of La Joya by a score of 51-49. The loss unfortunately continues a disappointing trend for Edinburg in their matchups with the Coyotes: they've now lost four in a row.
Despite their defeat, Edinburg saw several players rise to the challenge and make noteworthy plays. Axel Navarro, who scored ten points along with two steals, was perhaps the best of all. Navarro has been hot recently, having posted two or more steals the last four times he's played. Phoenix McBride was another key contributor, scoring 13 points along with eight rebounds.
Meanwhile, Edinburg North entered their tilt with the Eagles with six consecutive wins but they'll enter their next game with seven. Edinburg North strolled past the Eagles with points to spare on Friday, taking the game 57-41. Given Edinburg North's advantage in MaxPreps' Texas basketball rankings (they are ranked 254th, while the Eagles are ranked 1119th), the result wasn't entirely unexpected.
Joseph Cruz continued his habit of posting crazy stat lines, scoring 20 points along with eight rebounds and seven steals. It was the first time this season that he pulled down eight or more rebounds. Another player making a difference was Richard Molina, who scored ten points along with six rebounds.
Edinburg's loss dropped their record down to 17-10. As for Edinburg North, they are on a roll lately: they've won 11 of their last 12 games, which provided a nice bump to their 25-8 record this season.
Friday's contest is shaping up to be a masterclass in shooting: Edinburg have been dynamite from deep this season, having made 40.1% of their threes per game. However, it's not like Edinburg North struggles in that department as they've made 43.9% of their threes this season. Given these competing strengths, it'll be interesting to see how their clash plays out.
Edinburg might still be hurting after the 59-36 defeat they got from the Cougars in their previous matchup back in January. A big factor in that loss was the dominant performance of Cruz, who scored 16 points along with two steals. Now that Edinburg knows the damage he can cause, will they be able to stop him this time? Check MaxPreps.com after the match to find out.
