BAYAMON, Puerto Rico (Interstat) — The Bayamon Vaqueros, owners of the best record in the Puerto Rican BSN, welcome the Caguas Criollos to Ruben Rodriguez Coliseum on Monday night in a matchup between two teams trending in opposite directions.

Bayamon (12-5) has won three of its last four contests and features a defense that has held opponents under 90 points in six of its past eight games. The Vaqueros are coming off a 109-87 road rout of Santurce on Friday, a game in which forward Jae Crowder posted 25 points, 10 rebounds, four assists and three blocks in 29 minutes. Crowder has recorded three double-doubles in his past six games while averaging 14.3 points and 7.0 rebounds over that stretch. He will be joined by point guard Gary Browne, who dished out eight assists Friday, and forward Xavier Cooks, who added 23 points and six boards in the win. Bayamon’s balanced attack has been a hallmark of its fast start, though the Vaqueros have suffered home losses this season to Aguada and Manati.

Caguas (6-5) enters on a three-game losing skid, all by three points or fewer. The Criollos fell 102-101 at home to Mayaguez on Thursday despite 26 points and 17 rebounds from center Moses Brown. Brown has been a consistent force over the past month, averaging 19.4 points and 12.1 rebounds over his last 10 games while shooting efficiently around the rim. He has posted double-doubles in seven of his past eight contests, including a 23-point, 16-rebound, three-block performance at Guaynabo on April 13 and a 26-point, 17-rebound effort against Mayaguez. Point guard Travis Trice has also been productive, scoring at least 20 points in four of his last six games, including 24 points and eight assists in the Mayaguez loss.

The Criollos have shown an ability to score, topping 100 points in four of their past five games, but their defense has allowed 100 or more in four of their past six. Caguas will need to tighten up on the perimeter to slow a Bayamon team that shot 50.6% from the field Friday.

Tipoff is set for 8 p.m. AST. The teams will meet again on May 5 in Bayamon and again on May 12 in Caguas.