Basketball Game Preview: Zuni Thunderbirds vs. Tohatchi Cougars

Zuni hasn't had much luck against Tohatchi recently, but that could start to change on Friday. The Zuni Thunderbirds will be playing in front of their home fans against the Tohatchi Cougars at 7:00 p.m. Keep an eye on the score for this one: both posted some lofty point totals in their previous games.

Zuni took a loss when they played away from home on Friday, but their home fans gave them all the motivation they needed on Wednesday. They breezed by Newcomb to the tune of 63-34. The win was a breath of fresh air for the Thunderbirds as it put an end to their three-game losing streak.

Meanwhile, Tohatchi had already won eight in a row (a stretch where they outscored their opponents by an average of 21.6 points) and they went ahead and made it nine on Friday. They strolled past the Bears with points to spare, taking the game 70-55. 70 seems to be a good number for the Cougars as the team scooped up a victory with the same number of points in their previous game.

Tohatchi had a senior duo take command as Josh Dawes posted 26 points and Kyle Yazzie had 18 points. Dawes' evening made it 11 games in a row in which he has scored at least ten points. Another player making a difference was Elijah Johnson, who put up seven points.

Tohatchi has been performing incredibly well recently as they've won 12 of their last 13 contests, which provided a nice bump to their 17-2 record this season. Those victories came thanks to their offensive performance across that stretch, as they averaged 65.1 points per game. As for Zuni, their win bumped their record up to 11-8.

Zuni came up short against Tohatchi when the teams last played back in February of 2024, falling 68-56. Can Zuni avenge their defeat or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.