Basketball Game Preview: Thunder Ridge Longhorns vs. Northern Valley Huskies

The Thunder Ridge Longhorns will head out on the road to take on the Northern Valley Huskies at 4:00 p.m. on Saturday. Thunder Ridge will be strutting in after a victory while Northern Valley will be coming in after a defeat.

Last Tuesday, Thunder Ridge strolled past Natoma with points to spare, taking the game 43-26. The win made it back-to-back victories for the Longhorns.

Thunder Ridge's win was the result of several impressive offensive performances. One of the most notable came from Jennifer Cochrun, who went 6 for 12 on her way to 13 points in addition to five boards and five steals. Cochrun has been hot recently, having posted two or more steals the last three times she's played. The team also got some help courtesy of Peyton Tweedy, who posted nine points and four blocks.

Thunder Ridge smashed the offensive glass and finished the game with 11 offensive rebounds. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now pulled down at least 11 offensive boards in five consecutive matchups.

Meanwhile, Northern Valley was not able to break out of their rough patch on Friday as the team picked up their fifth straight loss. They fell 47-36 to Weskan.

Thunder Ridge will need focus on slowing down Jordyn Cox, one of several Northern Valley players who made an impact when they last played. She went 5 of 8 on her way to 10 points along with five boards and three steals. The team also got some help courtesy of Jaycee Gebhard, who put up eight points and eight rebounds.

Northern Valley's defeat dropped their record down to 1-5. As for Thunder Ridge, they now have a winning record of 3-2.

Rebounding is likely to be a big factor in this contest: Thunder Ridge has crashing the boards this season, having averaged 34.8 rebounds per game. However, it's not like Northern Valley struggles in that department as they've been averaging 34.8 boards. With both teams battling to corral missed shots, we'll see if one team can grab an edge.

Thunder Ridge came up short against Northern Valley in their previous meeting back in March, falling 37-29. Can Thunder Ridge avenge their loss or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.