Basketball Recap: Marquilos Mata and Devontay Bursey Secure Win for Vista PEAK Prep

After losing to Denver East the last time they met, Vista PEAK Prep decided to demonstrate that turnabout is fair play. The Vista PEAK Prep Bison narrowly escaped with a victory as the team sidled past the Denver East Angels 59-57. The win made it back-to-back victories for the Bison.

Leading Vista PEAK Prep to victory were Devontay Bursey and Marquilos Mata. Bursey went 9 of 16 on his way to 21 points, while Mata dropped a double-double on 12 points and 11 boards. Those 21 points gave Bursey a new career-high. Larry Mosley was another key player, putting up five points.

Vista PEAK Prep was working as a unit and finished the game with 16 assists. They easily outclassed their opponents in that department as Denver East only racked up nine assists.

Denver East's loss on Tuesday came despite strong showings from JAMES MURRAY and NIJIER ALEXANDER. MURRAY dropped a double-double on 13 points and 11 rebounds, while ALEXANDER went 8 for 14 en route to 16 points and four steals. MURRAY is on a roll when it comes to boards, as he's now pulled down eight or more in the last three games he's played. Another player making a difference was LINCOLN LEMIEUX, who posted eight points in addition to six rebounds and four blocks.

Vista PEAK Prep has been performing well recently as they've won three of their last four contests, which provided a nice bump to their 8-9 record this season. The wins came thanks to their offensive performance across that stretch, as they averaged 63.0 points per game. As for Denver East, their loss was their third straight on the road, which dropped their record down to 6-11.

Vista PEAK Prep will be playing in front of their home fans against Northfield at 7:00 p.m. on Friday. Northfield knows how to get points on the board -- the squad has finished with 55 points or more in their past 14 matches -- so hopefully Vista PEAK Prep likes a good challenge. As for Denver East, they will venture away from home to take on Denver South at 12:00 p.m. on Saturday. Denver East is facing Denver South at the right time seeing as Denver South is stuck on a four-game losing streak.