Basketball Game Preview: Bluffton Tigers vs. Manchester Squires

The Bluffton Tigers will square off against the Manchester Squires at 7:30 p.m. on Tuesday. Bluffton knows how to get points on the board -- the squad has finished with 55 points or more in their past seven games -- so hopefully Manchester likes a good challenge.

Bluffton is headed into the matchup after thoroughly thrashing Heritage: they outscored them in every quarter. Given that consistent dominance, it should come as no surprise that Bluffton blew Heritage out of the water with an 86-22 final score. The Tigers have made a habit of sweeping their opponents off the court, having now won 18 contests by 21 points or more this season.

Isabella Stout continued her habit of posting crazy stat lines, going 11 for 18 on her way to 31 points and five boards. Her evening made it seven games in a row in which she has scored at least ten points. Another player making a difference was Konley Ault, who went 7 of 9 en route to 17 points and three steals.

Bluffton was working as a unit and finished the game with 22 assists. They easily outclassed their opponents in that department as Heritage only posted eight assists.

Meanwhile, Manchester came up short against Peru on Monday and fell 51-43.

Bluffton's victory was their 13th straight at home dating back to last season, which pushed their record up to 20-2. Those victories came thanks to their offensive performance across that stretch, as they averaged 75.3 points per game. As for Manchester, their defeat dropped their record down to 9-12.

Bluffton was able to grind out a solid win over Manchester in their previous meeting back in January of 2024, winning 57-47. One of the biggest obstacles the team faced in that game was Manchester's Emma Walker, who went 6 for 10 on her way to 18 points in addition to five rebounds and four steals. Now that she's got a second chance to win this matchup, will Bluffton still be able to contain Walker? There's only one way to find out.