Two dominant guards in Diya Boyapati and Aastha Bhagat are getting ready to go toe-to-toe. The Leland Chargers will challenge the Evergreen Valley Cougars at 7:00 p.m. on Tuesday. The teams are rolling into the game with opposing streaks: Leland has struggled recently with six defeats in a row, while Evergreen Valley will arrive with eight straight wins.
On Saturday, Leland was within striking distance but couldn't close the gap as they fell 59-55 to Christopher. While losing is never fun, the Chargers can't take it too hard given the team's big disadvantage in MaxPreps' California basketball rankings (they are ranked 809th, while the Cougars are ranked 172nd).
| 01/25/25 vs Christopher | 3 |
| 01/23/25 @ Pioneer | 2 |
| 01/21/25 @ Willow Glen | 3 |
| 01/14/25 vs Prospect | 2 |
| 01/09/25 vs Branham | 3 |
| 01/07/25 vs Evergreen Valley | 2 |
Leland might have lost, but man, Boyapati was a machine: she went 10 for 19 en route to 24 points along with five boards and three steals. Boyapati is on a roll when it comes to steals, as she's now grabbed two or more in the last six games she's played. Another player making a difference was Saanvi Gunukula, who posted 11 points and seven steals.
Even though they lost, Leland smashed the offensive glass and finished the game with 11 offensive rebounds. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now pulled down at least eight offensive boards in four consecutive matchups.
Meanwhile, even if it wasn't a dominant performance, Evergreen Valley beat Willow Glen 50-44 on Thursday. That's two games straight that the Cougars have won by exactly six points.
Leland better keep an eye on Bhagat. She was instrumental in Evergreen Valley's win, putting up 22 points in addition to six rebounds and five assists. Those six boards gave Bhagat a new career-high. The team also got some help courtesy of Diya Dharmashankar, who scored 11 points and five rebounds.
Evergreen Valley pushed their record up to 15-3 with the victory, which was their fifth straight at home. Those victories came thanks to their offensive performance across that stretch, as they averaged 56.6 points per game. As for Leland, their loss dropped their record down to 4-13.
Rebounding is likely to be a big factor in this contest: Leland has been crashing the boards this season, having averaged 27.6 rebounds per game. However, it's not like Evergreen Valley struggles in that department as they've been averaging 26.4 boards. With both teams battling to corral missed shots, we'll see if one team can grab an edge.
Leland ended up a good deal behind Evergreen Valley in their previous matchup on January 7th, losing 57-38. Can Leland avenge their defeat or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.
