The Leonia Lions's recent rough patch got a bit rougher on Wednesday after their sixth straight loss. They fell 69-56 to New Milford. While losing is never fun, Leonia can't take it too hard given the team's big disadvantage in MaxPreps' New Jersey basketball rankings (they are ranked 394th, while New Milford is ranked 185th).
New Milford found their leader in underclassman Dariel Liranzo, who scored 26 points along with six rebounds and four steals. As a matter of fact, that's the most points Liranzo has scored all season. Another player making a difference was Luis Placido, who scored 13 points along with six rebounds and three steals.
Leonia's defeat was their seventh straight on the road, which bumped their record down to 1-11. That rough patch can't be blamed on the team's offensive performance across that stretch, as they averaged 53.3 points per game. As for New Milford, the win makes it two in a row for them and bumps their season record up to 12-3.
Leonia will be playing in front of their home fans against Hawthorne Christian at 12:00 p.m. on Saturday. As for New Milford, they will head out on the road to challenge Ridgefield Memorial at 7:00 p.m. on Friday. Ridgefield Memorial will be looking to extend their current four-game winning streak.
