Basketball Recap: Rio Rancho Piles Up the Points Against Cleveland

Rams

Margin (Wins)

12/19/24 vs Atrisco Heritage Academy	55
01/07/25 @ Rio Grande	51
01/29/25 @ Cibola	48
12/20/24 vs Eldorado	41
12/12/24 vs Highland	40

On Wednesday, Rio Rancho faced Cleveland in a battle between two of the state's top teams. The Rio Rancho Rams simply couldn't be stopped as they easily beat the Cleveland Storm 72-44. The Rams have made a habit of sweeping their opponents off the court, having now won nine matchups by 21 points or more this season.

Rio Rancho's success was the result of a balanced attack that saw several players step up, but Larissa Martinez led the charge by going 5 of 9 on her way to 12 points along with eight assists and six steals. Martinez is on a roll when it comes to steals, as she's now grabbed four or more in the last five games she's played. Madilynn Martinez was another key player, going 11 for 17 to rack up 24 points.

Larissa wasn't the only one working in the assist department: Rio Rancho was working as a unit and finished the game with 20 assists. That's the most assists they've posted since back in November of 2024.

Several Storm players turned in solid performances despite ultimately coming up short. Perhaps the best among those players was Alyssa Curley, who went 5 of 7 en route to 15 points and five rebounds. What's more, Curley also posted a 75% three-point shooting accuracy, which is the highest she's posted since back in December of 2024. Another player making a difference was Savannah Madueno, who posted nine points.

The victory was the third in a row for Rio Rancho, bringing their record for this year to 14-7. The wins came thanks in part to their offensive performance across that stretch, as they averaged 67.3 points over those games. As for Cleveland, their defeat was their fourth straight on the road, which dropped their record down to 11-10.

Rio Rancho has already played their next contest, a 45-42 loss against Farmington on the 7th. As for Cleveland, they also didn't take long to hit the court again: they've already played their next game, a 60-37 win against Cibola on the 7th.