Basketball Game Preview: Central Spartans vs. Montgomery Aztecs

Central hasn't had much luck against Montgomery recently, but that could start to change on Monday. The Central Spartans will wrap up 2024 with a road trip to face off against the Montgomery Aztecs at 12:00 p.m. The two teams are sauntering into the matchup backed by comfortable wins in their prior games.

Montgomery is hoping to do what La Jolla couldn't on Saturday: put an end to Central's winning streak, which now stands at three games. Central ended the year with a bang, routing La Jolla 67-42. The Spartans have made a habit of sweeping their opponents off the court, having now won four matches by 25 points or more this season.

Central found their leader in sophomore Victoria Zamora, who posted 28 points. As a matter of fact, that's the most points Zamora has scored all season. Another player making a difference was Maryanne Barrett, who had 12 points and five steals.

Meanwhile, Montgomery waltzed into their game on Saturday with two straight wins... but they left with three. They blew past the Bulldogs 48-27. Given the Aztecs' advantage in MaxPreps' California basketball rankings (they are ranked 298th, while the Bulldogs are ranked 826th), the result wasn't entirely unexpected.

Montgomery is on a roll lately: they've won seven of their last nine contests, which provided a nice bump to their 9-4 record this season. Those victories came thanks to their offensive performance across that stretch, as they averaged 52.0 points per game. As for Central, their win bumped their record up to 8-4.

Central was taken down by Montgomery 68-29 in their previous meeting back in December of 2023. Thankfully for Central, Jordan Whitehead (who went 10 of 15 on her way to 24 points in addition to eight steals and seven boards) won't be suiting up this time. Will that be enough to change the final result? There's only one way to find out.