Basketball Game Preview: Tulare Western Mustangs vs. Hanford Bullpups

The Tulare Western Mustangs will square off against the Hanford Bullpups at 7:15 p.m. on Tuesday. Given that both suffered a loss in their last games, they both have a little extra motivation heading into this game.

Tulare Western is headed into the contest out to prove that what happened against Dinuba on Friday (when they were outscored in every quarter) was just a minor bump in the road. Tulare Western had to suffer through a 51-24 loss at the hands of Dinuba. The defeat continues a trend for the Mustangs in their matchups with the Emperors: they've now lost nine in a row.

Despite the loss, Tulare Western had strong showings from Regina Toscano, who posted eight points along with ten boards and three steals, and Alexa Bello, who had four points in addition to six rebounds and three steals. Toscano has been hot for a while, having posted two or more steals the last ten times she's played.

Meanwhile, Hanford was not able to break out of their rough patch on Friday as the team picked up their third straight defeat. They took a 63-44 bruising from Tulare Union.

Tulare Western's loss dropped their record down to 15-9. As for Hanford, their defeat dropped their record down to 3-16.

Everything went Tulare Western's way against Hanford when the teams last played back in January, as Tulare Western made off with a 53-33 win. Does Tulare Western have another victory up their sleeve, or will Hanford turn the tables on them? We'll have the answer soon enough.