The Merced Bears tipped the visiting El Capitan Gauchos basketball team by a final score of 46-43 in Wednesday's league game.

In their next game, the Bears face the Central Valley Hawks (Ceres, CA) in a game, on Thursday, January 5. Merced will attempt to move on its 15-2 season record. The Hawks enter the game with a 0-2 record after their 60-13 non-league loss to Turlock (Turlock, CA).

With the defeat, El Capitan moves to 1-2 on the year. The Gauchos travel to Golden Valley (Merced, CA) to face the Cougars in a game on Monday, January 9. The Cougars enter the game with a record of 1-5.