Saguaro’s varsity boys basketball team heads up north and into the cold to face Flagstaff Friday night.

Both teams sit just above the .500 mark on the season, with Saguaro at 11-10, and Flagstaff at 11-9. Flagstaff is coming off of two tough losses, including a 43-point loss to Buckeye. Saguaro on the other hand, has strung together two away wins in a row.

Those two wins are just one short of the Sabercats' season-long win streak of three. Saguaro Coach Bob La Rue knows his team needs to find more consistency, “We’ve been inconsistent all year, we haven’t been able to shrink two games together.”

Flagstaff Coach Nick Walton viewed the two losses as a positive for the team, “It really reminded us to execute and play our style of basketball,” he said.

Saguaro will be without senior guard Antonio Cuevas, who will be out on a college visit. Cuevas is averaging 9.8 points per game for the Sabercats, third highest on the team. La Rue is looking to his two top scorers, Amir Evans and Anthony Ramirez, to help make up for Cuevas’ absence. Evans and Ramirez average 16.9 and 15.4 points respectively.

The Sabercats have benefitted from two midseason tranfers, Evans and Robert Davis, who leads the team in rebounding. Evans came from nearby Coronado while Davis had a lengthier trip, coming from Detroit.

Flagstaff, which sits at just shy of 7,000 feet, has proven to be a test of fitness for Phoenix Schools in the past. Walton is looking to use that altitude to his advantage, mentioning they will “try to push the basketball a little more.

La Rue expects his team to be ready for the altitude. The team has talked more extensively with their trainer, Nickie May, who is a Flagstaff native.

Walton is looking to lean on senior guard/forward K.P. Kortsen to help carry the load. Kortsen, who is 6-6, will have an opportunity to assert his presence over a smaller Saguaro lineup.

La Rue knows that junior forward Kyler Mikkelsen, who is 6-5, will have to step up against the bigger Eagles team. Davis, 6-4, will also look to shore up his defense in the post.

Both teams finish their regular season play in just two weeks. Flagstaff has five games remaining, while Saguaro has four.

The game tips off at 7 p.m. Friday night.