Preview: Mingus Marauders vs. Tempe Buffaloes
The Mingus Marauders will head out on the road to face off against the Tempe Buffaloes at 5:30 p.m. on Monday. The teams are on pretty different trajectories at the moment (Mingus has five straight victories, Tempe has four straight losses), but none of that matters once you're on the field.
Mingus has made a habit of sweeping their opponents off the court, having now won five matches by 31 points or more this season. They blew past Cactus 74-8 at home. Winning is a bit easier when you work as a team to rack up 22 more assists than your opponent, as Mingus did.
Mingus' success was spearheaded by the efforts of Savannah Tobias, who scored 15 points along with 8 steals and 6 rebounds, and Alice Kinsey, who scored 22 points along with 8 rebounds and 6 steals. The matchup was Kinsey's fifth in a row with at least ten points. Riana Barre was another key contributor, scoring 10 points along with 9 rebounds and 5 steals.
Meanwhile, Tempe came up short against Marcos de Niza on Friday and fell 35-27.
Despite their loss, Tempe saw several players rise to the challenge and make noteworthy plays. Kiari Montanez Woods, who scored 8 points, was perhaps the best of all. Another player making a difference was Coral Garcia Miranda, who scored 6 points.
Mingus' win bumped their record up to 5-0. As for Tempe, their defeat dropped their record down to 0-4.
Everything came up roses for Mingus against Tempe in their previous matchup back in December of 2022 as the squad secured a 63-11 victory. The rematch might be a little tougher for Mingus since the squad won't have the home-court advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.
