Basketball Game Preview: Cedar Falls Tigers vs. Xavier Saints

Cedar Falls is 9-1 against Xavier since January of 2019 and they'll have a chance to extend that dominance on Thursday. The Cedar Falls Tigers will head out to challenge the Xavier Saints at 7:30 p.m. Cedar Falls knows how to get points on the board -- the squad has finished with 55 points or more in their past eight contests -- so hopefully Xavier likes a good challenge.

Cedar Falls is coming in fresh off a high-stakes matchup with another one of Iowa's top teams: Dubuque Senior, who was ranked 12th at the time (Cedar Falls was ranked third). Cedar Falls enjoyed a cozy 62-48 victory over Dubuque Senior on Tuesday.

Xavier has been a dominant force so far, but they're in the middle of a mini-slump at the moment. They received a blow on Tuesday as they fell 57-42 to Prairie.

Cedar Falls pushed their record up to 18-2 with the win, which was their 19th straight at home dating back to last season. Those victories came thanks in part to their offensive performance across that stretch, as they averaged 71.7 points over those games. As for Xavier, their defeat dropped their record down to 14-8.

Cedar Falls took their victory against Xavier in their previous meeting back in January of 2024 by a conclusive 72-46. The rematch might be a little tougher for Cedar Falls since the team won't have the home-court advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.