The two teams assured themselves of the impending matchup by easily dispatching WYL foes in Wednesday night action, the Tigers beating up on hapless Golden West 86-49, just the latest blowout of a league rival, while Hanford cruised past Mt. Whitney 77-51.
The Tigers have been getting scoring from a diverse lineup including Matt Borba, who scored 21 points as his team crushed the Blazers to improve to 5-0 in the WYL and 17-2 overall. Jaylunn English continued his scoring prowess with another big effort, tossing in 17 points. Reggie Davis chipped in with 14 while Roger Wilson had 13 points.
The Tigers literally had the game in the bag by the end of the first period, outscoring Golden West 26-15. The had a huge 49-22 advantage at the half.
For the Blazers, Carter Hill scored 22 points.
Hanford, while not experiencing quite the blowout that Lemoore enjoyed, did manage to easily get past the Pioneers, taking a first half 33-17 lead and then increasing the margin in the second half. Hanford is also 5-0 in the WYL and 13-5 overall.
Lemoore’s Lady Tigers will be hoping for an upset as they host Hanford Friday night in the Event Center. Lemoore beat Golden West 62-49 to improve to 4-1 in the WYL, and with a victory could share first place with the Bullpups.
Hanford, though not quite the powerhouse it has been in previous seasons, is still formidable, entering Friday’s game with a 5-0 WYL mark and 14-5 overall.