Basketball Game Preview: Merced Bears vs. Golden Valley Cougars

The Merced Bears will venture away from home to square off against the Golden Valley Cougars at 7:15 p.m. on Tuesday. Having both just faced considerable losses, both teams are looking to turn things around.

Merced is headed into the matchup out to prove that what happened against Atwater on Thursday (when they were outscored in every quarter) was just a minor bump in the road. Merced was outmatched by Atwater and fell 75-25. The contest marked the Bears' lowest-scoring game so far this season.

Meanwhile, Golden Valley was not able to break out of their rough patch on Thursday as the team picked up their third straight loss. They were beaten by El Capitan 70-29. While losing is never fun, the Cougars can't take it too hard given the team's big disadvantage in MaxPreps' California basketball rankings (they are ranked 961st, while the Gauchos are ranked 128th).

Golden Valley's defeat dropped their record down to 6-15. As for Merced, their loss dropped their record down to 12-9.

Everything came up roses for Merced against Golden Valley in their previous meeting back in January of 2024, as the squad secured a 56-20 victory. Will Merced repeat their success, or does Golden Valley have a new game plan this time around? We'll find out soon enough.