Basketball Recap: James Steward's Big Game Can't Quite Lead Marcos De Niza over Tempe

Marcos de Niza was the 49-41 winner over Tempe when they last played one another back in December of 2023, but their luck changed this time around. The Marcos de Niza Padres'2024 ended with a 75-60 defeat against the Tempe Buffaloes on Saturday.

Marcos de Niza's loss came despite a true team effort from the offense, with many players turning in solid performances. Perhaps the best among them was James Steward, who dropped a double-double on 16 points and 13 boards. Steward has been hot for a while, having posted eight or more rebounds the last 16 times he's played. Another player making a difference was Jeidarion Richard, who went 6 of 12 en route to 15 points.

Even though they lost, Marcos de Niza was working as a unit and finished the game with 15 assists. They easily outclassed their opponents in that department as Tempe only racked up nine assists.

It was another big night for Nassir Cobbs, who posted 31 points and four steals for Tempe. That makes it four consecutive games in which Cobbs has scored at least a third of Tempe's points. The team also got some help courtesy of Sa?Veon Mccrimon, who put up 15 points and four steals.

Marcos de Niza's defeat dropped their record down to 11-4. As for Tempe, they are on a roll lately: they've won three of their last four games, which provided a nice bump to their 8-6 record this season.

Marcos de Niza will get a bit of extra time to process the loss as their next game is a ways off. They'll take on St. Mary's at 7:00 p.m. on January 7, 2025. Marcos de Niza is facing St. Mary's at the right time seeing as St. Mary's is stuck on a three-game losing streak. Tempe will also get a bit of a break before their next match: they'll face off against Dysart at 7:00 p.m. on January 7, 2025.