Basketball Game Preview: St. Margaret's Tartans vs. Irvine Vaqueros

The St. Margaret's Tartans will head out on the road to square off against the Irvine Vaqueros at 7:00 p.m. on Tuesday. Expect the scorekeeper to be kept busy: if their previous games are any indication, the two teams will really light up the scoreboard.

On Saturday, St. Margaret's was within striking distance but couldn't close the gap as they fell 73-68 to Desert Christian Academy. While losing is never fun, the Tartans can't take it too hard given the team's big disadvantage in MaxPreps' California basketball rankings (they are ranked 841st, while the Conquerors are ranked 325th).

Meanwhile, Irvine came tearing into Friday's match with 14 straight wins (a stretch where they outscored their opponents by an average of 15.7 points) and they left with even more momentum. They blew past the Lightning 66-37. For those keeping track at home, that's the biggest victory the Vaqueros have posted since December 18, 2024.

St. Margaret's has been struggling recently as they've lost eight of their last nine games, which put a noticeable dent in their 8-16 record this season. As for Irvine, they pushed their record up to 22-2 with the win, which was their eighth straight at home.

St. Margaret's suffered a grim 70-46 defeat to Irvine when the teams last played back in December of 2024. Can St. Margaret's avenge their loss or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.