The Golden Valley Cougars will head out on the road to challenge the Merced Bears at 7:15 p.m. on Monday. Both teams come into the game bolstered by wins in their previous matches.
It may have taken overtime to finish the job, but Golden Valley ultimately got the result they hoped for on Friday. They walked away with a 59-52 win over Patterson. The victory made it back-to-back wins for Golden Valley.
Golden Valley's win was a true team effort, with many players turning in solid performances. Perhaps the best among them was Braden Castleton, who scored 18 points. Castleton hasn't dropped below 15points for three straight games. The team also got some help courtesy of Ricardo Perez, who scored 17 points.
Meanwhile, Merced can now show off eight landslide victories after their most recent match on Friday. They took their game at home with ease, bagging a 75-45 victory over Buhach Colony. For those keeping track at home, that's the biggest victory Merced has posted since December 12, 2023.
Golden Valley is on a roll lately: they've won six of their last seven matchups, which provided a nice bump to their 16-6 record this season. As for Merced, the win got them back to even at 11-11.
Golden Valley won a matchup that couldn't have been any closer in their previous meeting on January 3rd, slipping by Merced 55-54. The rematch might be a little tougher for Golden Valley since the team won't have the home-court advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.
