The Cesar Chavez Champions will square off against the Higley Knights at 7:00 p.m. on Thursday. Both squads will be entering this one on the heels of a big victory.
Cesar Chavez is on a roll after a high-stakes playoff matchup on Thursday. They took their game with ease, bagging an 80-26 victory over South Mountain. The win was familiar territory for the Champions, who have now won 11 matches in a row.
Victoria Ballard
| 02/20/25 vs South Mountain | 21 |
| 02/12/25 @ South Mountain | 25 |
| 02/11/25 vs Camelback | 19 |
| 02/07/25 @ Shadow Ridge | 21 |
| 02/06/25 @ Browne | 15 |
| + 6 more games |
Victoria Ballard continued her habit of posting crazy stat lines, going 9-for-16 on her way to 21 points along with eight steals and six rebounds. Her evening made it 11 games in a row in which she has scored at least 15 points. The team also got some help courtesy of Alex Ballard, who went 6-for-12 en route to 15 points in addition to five assists and three steals.
Cesar Chavez smashed the offensive glass and finished the game with ten offensive rebounds. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now pulled down at least eight offensive boards in 12 consecutive contests.
Meanwhile, there's no place like home for Higley, who bounced back after a loss on the road two weeks ago. They simply couldn't be stopped on Thursday as they easily beat Skyline 58-28.
Higley found their leader in sophomore Cadence Murdough, who posted seven points along with 12 boards and seven steals. Murdough is on a roll when it comes to rebounds, as she's now pulled down eight or more in each of the last 14 games she's played. Maci Kerns was another key player, going 5-for-12 to rack up 13 points and three steals.
Cesar Chavez's victory was their sixth straight at home, which pushed their record up to 22-6. The wins came thanks in part to their defensive effort, having only surrendered 20.8 points over those games. As for Higley, their win bumped their record up to 16-11.
Rebounding is likely to be a big factor in this contest: Cesar Chavez has been smashing the glass this season, having averaged 22.9 boards per game. However, it's not like Higley struggles in that department as they've been averaging 29.7 rebounds. With both teams battling to corral missed shots, we'll see if one team can grab an edge.
Everything came up roses for Cesar Chavez against Higley in their previous meeting back in January of 2016, as the squad secured a 64-22 victory. Will Cesar Chavez repeat their success, or does Higley have a new game plan this time around? We'll find out soon enough.
