A feisty cat fight will be fought as the Tigers challenge the Panthers at 7:00 p.m. on Friday. Gilbert knows how to get points on the board -- the team has finished with 55 points or more in their past four matches -- so hopefully Maryvale likes a good challenge.
Last Thursday, Gilbert lost to Highland on the road by a 77-60 margin. Despite running the score up even higher than they did in their prior game last Tuesday (59), the Tigers still had to take the loss.
Meanwhile, Maryvale waltzed into their contest last Wednesday with two straight wins... but they left with three. They blew past the Bruins 70-50. Given the Panthers' advantage in MaxPreps' Arizona basketball rankings (they are ranked 104th, while the Bruins are ranked 234th), the result wasn't entirely unexpected.
Gilbert better keep an eye on Devin Murphy. He was instrumental in Maryvale's win, dropping a double-double with 22 points and 25 rebounds. Murphy has been hot for a while, having posted eight or more boards the last 26 times he's played. The team also got some help courtesy of Jose Garcia, who posted 18 points and five steals.
Maryvale smashed the offensive glass and finished the game with 18 offensive boards. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now pulled down at least nine offensive rebounds in 12 consecutive games.
Maryvale's win was their third straight on the road, which pushed their record up to 15-10. Those victories came thanks in part to their offensive performance across that stretch, as they averaged 74.0 points over those games. As for Gilbert, they have been struggling recently as they've lost three of their last four matches. That's put a noticeable dent in their 9-14 record this season.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
