The Maple Mountain Golden Eagles are taking a road trip to take on the Salem Hills Skyhawks at 7:00 p.m. on Friday. Maple Mountain is strutting in with some offensive muscle as they've averaged 52.9 points per game this season.
Last Tuesday, Maple Mountain was within striking distance but couldn't close the gap as they fell 59-53 to Springville. While losing is never fun, the Golden Eagles can't take it too hard given the team's big disadvantage in MaxPreps' Utah basketball rankings (they are ranked 70th, while the Red Devils are ranked 20th).
The losing side was boosted by Elijah Liddiard, who went 6 for 10 on his way to 16 points and five rebounds. Cole Erickson was another key player, putting up seven points.
Meanwhile, Salem Hills was not able to break out of their rough patch on Tuesday as the team picked up their third straight loss. The contest between them and Spanish Fork didn't end well, with Salem Hills falling 71-57. That's two games in a row now that the Skyhawks have lost by exactly 14 points.
Maple Mountain will have to contain Jacoby Gustin as he made an impact in Salem Hills' last game. He almost dropped a double-double on nine points and ten boards. Another player making a difference was Steven Taylor, who posted four points and six rebounds.
Salem Hills' defeat ended a three-game streak of away wins and brought them to 6-9. As for Maple Mountain, this is the second loss in a row for them and also nudges their season record down to 6-9.
Maple Mountain was able to grind out a solid victory over Salem Hills in their previous matchup back in January of 2024, winning 82-69. One of the biggest obstacles trying to stand in the way of that victory was Salem Hills' Chase Degraffenried, who went 12 of 24 en route to 31 points in addition to seven boards and three steals. Now that he won't be playing on Friday, will it be easier for Maple Mountain to walk away with another win? There's only one way to find out.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
