Basketball Recap: Make It Eight in a Row for Coalinga

Horned Toads

Margin (Wins)

12/28/24 vs Santa Maria	30
12/18/24 @ Fresno	27
12/27/24 vs North Salinas	21
12/17/24 vs Golden West	21
12/19/24 vs Tulare Western	12

Coalinga waltzed into their match on Saturday with seven straight wins... but they left with eight. They blew past the Santa Maria Saints 65-35. The Horned Toads have made a habit of sweeping their opponents off the court, having now won 11 contests by 20 points or more this season.

Coalinga found their leader in sophomore Alikah Rafiu, who went 8 of 18 on her way to 21 points. Those 21 points set a new season-high mark for Rafiu. The team also got some help courtesy of Kylie Carpenter, who posted nine points and six rebounds.

Coalinga smashed the offensive glass and finished the game with 21 offensive rebounds. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now pulled down at least 11 offensive boards in 12 consecutive games.

Several Saints players turned in solid performances despite ultimately coming up short. Perhaps the best among those players was Evelin Roman, who had six points. The dominant performance gave Roman a new career-high in points. Another player making a difference was Aaliyah Juarez, who put up seven points and seven rebounds.

Coalinga pushed their record up to 13-2 with the win, which was their 12th straight at home dating back to last season. The wins came thanks to their defensive effort, having only surrendered 25.0 points per game. As for Santa Maria, their loss dropped their record down to 8-6.

Coalinga will get to enjoy the win for a while: their next game is against Templeton at 5:00 p.m. on January 7, 2025. As for Santa Maria, they didn't take long to hit the court again: they've already played their next matchup, a 46-21 victory against Greenfield on the 28th.