Basketball Game Preview: Ephrata Tigers vs. Toppenish Wildcats

A feisty cat fight is on tap when the Ephrata Tigers duke it out with the Toppenish Wildcats at 7:00 p.m. on Friday...

Last Tuesday, Ephrata didn't have quite enough to beat East Valley and fell 66-63. The Tigers haven't had much luck with the Red Devils recently, as the team's come up short the last three times they've met.

Meanwhile, Toppenish had to endure a four-game losing streak, but that streak is no more. They managed a 54-50 victory over Quincy on Tuesday.

Toppenish's win came from a few key players Ephrata will need to keep an eye on. One of the most notable was Tyland Taylor, who posted ten points and five boards. Those five rebounds gave him a new career-high. The team also got some help courtesy of Jason Sanchez, who had 11 points and seven boards.

Toppenish was working as a unit and finished the game with 12 assists. They are 6-10 when they've passed the ball that well.

Ephrata's defeat dropped their record down to 6-14. As for Toppenish, their win bumped their record up to 7-12.

Ephrata came up short against Toppenish in their previous meeting back in January, falling 49-44. A big factor in that loss was the dominant performance of Sanchez, who dropped a double-double on 21 points and ten rebounds. Now that Ephrata knows the damage he can cause, will they be able to stop him this time? There's only one way to find out.