INLAND FIELDHOUSE

I’m covering the Murrieta Valley-Moreno Valley Rancho Verde boys varsity basketball game tonight for The Press-Enterprise. The best part of this assignment is sure to be analyzing the Nighthawks, last season’s CIF-Southern Section Division 2-AA champion.

The Nighthawks (3-0 overall) play the Mustangs (3-0) at Perris Citrus Hill HS in the championship game of the Big Daddy Tournament. Game time is 6:30 p.m.

THE LOWDOWN:
Senior F Justin Gudger scored 24 points, and senior G Austin Quick had 17 as Murrieta Valley earned a spot in the finale with a 68-57 victory Friday over Rancho Cucamonga Los Osos. Their scoring and play-making are essential to coach Steve Tarabilda’s game plan; Gudger leads the team with 18 points per game, and Quick is averaging 5.3 assists per game.

Junior W Jordan Grace scored 20 points as Rancho Verde advanced to the title game with a 59-50 victory Friday over Moreno Valley Canyon Springs. Grace’s scoring compliments a strong core of seniors, led by W Aaron Cheatum, who will look to earn coach Travis Showalter an early signature victory.

PROJECTED STARTING 5s:
MURRIETA VALLEY — G: Austin Quick, Mark Tarabilda; F: Justin Gudger, Darius Helms, Jackson Butler.

RANCHO VERDE — G: Spencer Poston; W: Jordan Grace, Aaron Cheatum, Tiarion Alverson; F: Fred Collins.

THE DIFFERENCE:
Defense, and not offense, will likely tell the tale of this game. With both teams scoring so many points, it’ll be defensive stops and turnovers that determine the outcome, not a mid-range jumper from Gudger or a big dunk from Cheatum. Although both of those are nice.