The Yuma Criminals's recent rough patch got a bit rougher on Thursday after their third straight loss. They fell 62-51 to Thunderbird. Yuma has not had much luck with Thunderbird recently, as the team's come up short the last two times they've met.
Yuma's loss came despite a true team effort from the offense, with many players turning in solid performances. Perhaps the best among them was Andrew Mosqueda, who scored 13 points along with four steals and two blocks. Mosqueda hasn't dropped below two steals for three straight games. The team also got some help courtesy of Jorge Moreno, who scored nine points.
Thunderbird's success was the result of a balanced attack that saw several players step up, but Will Clark led the charge by dropping a double-double on 12 points and 15 rebounds. Clark is on a roll when it comes to rebounds, as he's now pulled down eight or more in the last three games he's played. Chase Benson was another key contributor, scoring a point along with 25 steals.
Yuma's defeat was their third straight on the road, which bumped their record down to 8-3. As for Thunderbird, the win makes it two in a row for them and bumps their season record up to 14-5.
Yuma will be playing at home against Shadow Mountain at 7:00 p.m. on Friday. Hopefully Shadow Mountain focused on turnovers this week since the team gave up 16 on Thursday. As for Thunderbird, they will head out on the road to challenge Greenway at 7:00 p.m. on Friday. Greenway will have to bring their A-game into this one, as they are staring down a pretty big deficit in the MaxPreps Arizona Rankings (they are ranked 266th, while Thunderbird is ranked 59th).
