The Copper Canyon Aztecs's recent rough patch got a bit rougher on Friday after their fourth straight loss. They were just a bucket shy of victory and fell 39-38 to High Tech SD. The loss was a bit of a surprise, as Copper Canyon came into the matchup with a sizable advantage in MaxPreps's basketball rankings in their respective home states (they are ranked 204th in Arizona, while High Tech SD is ranked 491st in California).
Copper Canyon's defeat came despite a true team effort from the offense, with many players turning in solid performances. Perhaps the best among them was Bri'ann Felix, who scored 21 points along with nine rebounds and four steals. The match was Felix's 12th in a row with at least ten points. Zalaya Dupre was another key contributor, dropping a double-double on 11 points and 19 rebounds.
Even though they lost, Copper Canyon were smashing the offensive glass and finished the game with 11 offensive rebounds. They easily outclassed their opponents in that department as High Tech SD only pulled down 18 offensive rebounds.
Emma LaSalle continued her habit of posting crazy stat lines for High Tech SD, scoring 18 points along with nine steals. LaSalle is absolutely dominating the steal category: she's posted at least two every time she's taken the court this season. Another player making a difference was Vivianna Cravens, who scored eight points along with nine rebounds.
Copper Canyon's defeat dropped their record down to 4-8. As for High Tech SD, the victory makes it two in a row for them and bumps their season record up to 12-3.
Copper Canyon will get a bit of extra time to process the loss as their next game is a ways off. They'll take on Youngker at 7:00 p.m. on January 9, 2024. Youngker will be looking to keep their four-game home win streak alive. High Tech SD and Crawford will face off at 6:00 p.m. on January 5, 2024 without much rest after finishing up games yesterday.
