Basketball Game Preview: McCool Junction Mustangs vs. Sutton Mustangs

The McCool Junction Mustangs will head out to face off against the Sutton Mustangs at 6:00 p.m. on Friday. Both come into the game bolstered by wins in their previous matches.

McCool Junction is headed into the match after thoroughly thrashing Hampton: they outscored them in every quarter. McCool Junction strolled past Hampton with points to spare on Saturday, taking the game 49-33.

Natalie Clark and Claire Brugger were among the main playmakers for McCool Junction as the former went 6 of 13 on her way to 19 points and three steals and the latter dropped a double-double on 11 points and 11 rebounds. The dominant performance gave Brugger a new career-high in boards. The team also got some help courtesy of Pieper Epp, who posted six points.

Meanwhile, there's no place like home for Sutton, who bounced back after a loss on the road on Saturday. They blew past Heartland 65-24 on Tuesday. The contest was all but wrapped up at the end of the third, by which point the Mustangs had established a 40 point advantage.

McCool Junction's victory was their seventh straight on the road dating back to last season, which pushed their record up to 1-1. Those victories came thanks to their offensive performance across that stretch, as they averaged 60.3 points per game. As for Sutton, their win (their first of the season) made their record 1-2.

McCool Junction was able to grind out a solid victory over Sutton when the teams last played back in December of 2023, winning 58-47. The rematch might be a little tougher for McCool Junction since the team won't have the home-court advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.