Basketball Game Preview: Sahuarita Mustangs vs. Walden Grove Red Wolves

Sahuarita is 2-8 against Walden Grove since February of 2021 but they'll have a chance to close the gap a little bit on Friday. The two teams will face off at 7:00 p.m. without much rest having both just played. Given that both suffered a loss in their last games, they both have a little extra motivation heading into this game.

Sahuarita is headed into the contest out to prove that what happened against Cholla on Thursday (when they were outscored in every quarter) was just a minor bump in the road. Sahuarita was dealt an 87-36 defeat at the hands of Cholla. The Mustangs were in a tough position after the first half, with the score already sitting at 43-22.

Meanwhile, Walden Grove ended up a good deal behind Mica Mountain on Thursday and lost 91-76. The Red Wolves have struggled against the Thunderbolts recently, as the game was their eighth consecutive lost matchup.

Sahuarita will have to keep a close watch on Mitchel Collins and Malachi Kuti George, a pair of players who had a big impact on Walden Grove's prior game. Collins posted 22 points, while Kuti George scored 20 points. Those 22 points gave Collins a new career-high. Asa Rupp was another key player, putting up 11 points.

Walden Grove's loss dropped their record down to 15-13. As for Sahuarita, their defeat ended a three-game streak of wins at home and dropped them to 11-14.

Sahuarita might still be hurting after the 70-46 loss they got from Walden Grove when the teams last played back in January of 2024. Can Sahuarita avenge their defeat or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.