The Hinckley-Finlayson Jaguars and the Rush City Tigers will face off at 5:30 p.m. on January 23rd without much rest after finishing up games yesterday. Given that the two teams suffered a loss in their last game, they both have a little extra motivation heading into this game.
Hinckley-Finlayson suffered their biggest loss since December 27, 2023 on Friday. They took a serious blow against Crosby-Ironton, falling 87-60. The loss unfortunately continues a disappointing trend for Hinckley-Finlayson in their matchups with Crosby-Ironton: they've now lost four in a row.
Rush City lost a heartbreaker when they last took the court, but unfortunately for them the defeat they were handed on on Friday was a bit more commanding. They suffered a tough 75-51 defeat at the hands of Mountain Iron-Buhl. While losing is never fun, Rush City can't take it too hard given the team's big disadvantage in MaxPreps' Minnesota basketball rankings (they are ranked 374th, while Mountain Iron-Buhl is ranked 80th).
Hinckley-Finlayson bumped their record down to 6-12 with that defeat, which was their third straight at home. As for Rush City, this is the second loss in a row for them and nudges their season record down to 4-12.
Hinckley-Finlayson strolled past Rush City when the teams last played on January 4th by a score of 64-48. The rematch might be a little tougher for Hinckley-Finlayson since the team won't have the home-court advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.
