The Chico Panthers will venture away from home to challenge the Pleasant Valley Vikings at 7:30 p.m. on Thursday. Both come into the matchup bolstered by wins in their previous matches.
Having struggled with four defeats in a row, Chico turned things around against Red Bluff on Tuesday. They walked away with a 48-39 win over the Spartans. Given the Panthers' advantage in MaxPreps' California basketball rankings (they are ranked 160th, while the Spartans are ranked 559th), the result wasn't entirely unexpected.
Meanwhile, Pleasant Valley came tearing into Tuesday's game with four straight wins (a stretch where they outscored their opponents by an average of 19.5 points) and they left with even more momentum. They simply couldn't be stopped as they easily beat the Hornets 65-31. The Vikings have made a habit of sweeping their opponents off the court, having now won ten contests by 22 points or more this season.
Pleasant Valley had a senior duo take command as Ava Dunn posted eight points and eight boards and Aj Gambol went 6 of 15 on her way to 12 points. Dunn is also on a roll when it comes to blocks, as she's now posted two or more in the last four games she's played. Another player making a difference was Shannon Fong, who put up eight points.
Pleasant Valley smashed the offensive glass and finished the game with 11 offensive boards. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now pulled down at least nine offensive rebounds in six consecutive matchups.
Pleasant Valley is on a roll lately: they've won 15 of their last 16 games, which provided a nice bump to their 20-4 record this season. Those victories came thanks to their offensive performance across that stretch, as they averaged 58.1 points per game. As for Chico, their victory bumped their record up to 14-10.
Chico didn't have too much breathing room in their contest against Pleasant Valley in their previous meeting back in January, but they still walked away with a 51-45 win. The rematch might be a little tougher for Chico since the team won't have the home-court advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
