Basketball Game Preview: Montezuma-Cortez Panthers vs. Monte Vista Pirates

Two dominant guards in Trey Hall and Azariah Hurtado are getting ready to go toe-to-toe. The Montezuma-Cortez Panthers will head out on the road to challenge the Monte Vista Pirates at 7:00 p.m. on Friday. One thing working in Montezuma-Cortez's favor is that they have posted at least 55 points in their last three contests.

It was a proper cat-fight when Montezuma-Cortez challenged Ignacio on Tuesday. Montezuma-Cortez strolled past Ignacio with points to spare, taking the game 64-50. The Panthers haven't had any issues with the Bobcats recently, as the game was their fifth consecutive win against them.

Meanwhile, Monte Vista didn't have too much breathing room in their game against Bayfield on Monday, but they still walked away with a 44-40 victory.

Montezuma-Cortez's win was their third straight at home, which pushed their record up to 16-5. The wins came thanks in part to their offensive performance across that stretch, as they averaged 65.0 points over those games. As for Monte Vista, the victory got them back to even at 10-10.

Montezuma-Cortez was able to grind out a solid win over Monte Vista in their previous meeting back in January, winning 76-65. The rematch might be a little tougher for Montezuma-Cortez since the team won't have the home-court advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.