Basketball Game Preview: Hurricane Tigers vs. Desert Hills Thunder

The Hurricane Tigers will head out on the road to challenge the Desert Hills Thunder at 7:00 p.m. on Friday. Hurricane knows how to get points on the board -- the team has finished with 55 points or more in their past six contests -- so hopefully Desert Hills likes a good challenge.

Hurricane will bounce into Friday's match after beating Dixie, who they had gone 0-9 against in their nine prior meetings. Hurricane came out on top against Dixie by a score of 69-56 on Wednesday. While the Tigers didn't have the best season last year (they finished 5-19), it's starting to look like those struggles are a thing of the past.

Hurricane's success was the result of a balanced attack that saw several players step up, but Calan Hughes led the charge by almost dropping a double-double on nine points and 11 boards. The dominant performance also gave Hughes a new career-high in blocks (four). Another player making a difference was RJ Hurst, who posted 19 points and four steals.

Meanwhile, winning is always nice, but doing so behind a season-high score is even better (just ask Desert Hills). They breezed by Cedar to the tune of 68-29 on Wednesday. The victory was familiar territory for the Thunder who have now won three games in a row.

Desert Hills' win came from a few key players Hurricane will need to keep an eye on. One of the most notable was Mason Rasmussen, who went 5 of 6 on his way to 13 points and five rebounds. The team also got some help courtesy of Chaz Holbrook, who had 13 points.

Desert Hills smashed the offensive glass and finished the game with 18 offensive rebounds. That's the most offensive boards they've managed all season.

Hurricane pushed their record up to 6-3 with the win, which was their fourth straight at home. The wins came thanks to their offensive performance across that stretch, as they averaged 70.8 points per game. As for Desert Hills, their victory bumped their record up to 6-4.

Hurricane came up short against Desert Hills when the teams last played back in February, falling 65-60. Thankfully for Hurricane, Eli Allred (who went 6 of 11 from beyond the arc on his way to 33 points and three steals) won't be suiting up this time. Will that be enough to change the final result? Check MaxPreps.com after the match to find out.