Basketball Game Preview: Combs Coyotes vs. Gilbert Classical Academy Spartans

The Combs Coyotes and the Gilbert Classical Academy Spartans will face off at 9:30 a.m. on Friday without much rest having both just played. Expect the scorekeeper to be kept busy: if their previous games are any indication, both will really light up the scoreboard.

Combs' tournament run continued when they took on Chandler Prep on Thursday. Combs blew past Chandler Prep 60-23. The contest marked the Coyotes' most dominant victory of the season so far.

Combs got their win on the backs of several key players, but it was Quinmetris Cunningham out in front who almost dropped a double-double on 16 points and nine boards. Cunningham is also crushing it when it comes to blocks: he's posted at least two every time he's taken the court this season. Another player making a difference was Logan Tuckfield, who went 5 of 8 en route to 12 points.

Combs smashed the offensive glass and finished the game with 21 offensive boards. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now pulled down at least ten offensive rebounds in five consecutive matchups.

Meanwhile, after a string of three wins, Gilbert Classical Academy's good fortune finally ran out on Thursday. They fell just short of Florence by a score of 62-60. Despite running the score up even higher than they did in their prior game back in December of 2024 (57), the Spartans still had to take the loss.

Combs is on a roll lately: they've won four of their last five games, which provided a nice bump to their 7-4 record this season. Those victories came thanks to their offensive performance across that stretch, as they averaged 57.6 points per game. As for Gilbert Classical Academy, their defeat dropped their record down to 7-5.