Basketball Game Preview: Albuquerque Academy Chargers vs. Del Norte Knights

The Albuquerque Academy Chargers will face off against the Del Norte Knights at 7:00 p.m. on Tuesday. Both come into the match bolstered by wins in their previous matches.

Albuquerque Academy is coming in fresh off a high-stakes matchup with another one of New Mexico's top teams: Hope Christian, who was ranked 25th at the time (Albuquerque Academy was ranked 24th). Albuquerque Academy snuck past Hope Christian with a 54-49 victory on Friday. The win made it back-to-back victories for the Chargers.

Del Norte's found some homefield redemption this week after a overtime loss to Highland on Friday. Del Norte breezed by Bernalillo to the tune of 66-34. The Knights have made a habit of sweeping their opponents off the court, having now won seven contests by 20 points or more this season.

Albuquerque Academy better keep an eye on Francois Satchivi. He was instrumental in Del Norte's win, going 6 for 9 on his way to 18 points and three steals. Satchivi's evening made it three games in a row in which he has scored at least ten points. The team also got some help courtesy of Jayden Davis, who posted seven points and five rebounds.

Albuquerque Academy has been performing incredibly well recently as they've won ten of their last 11 games, which provided a massive bump to their 13-6 record this season. The wins came thanks to their offensive performance across that stretch, as they averaged 62.4 points per game. As for Del Norte, their win was their third straight at home, which pushed their record up to 10-8.

Albuquerque Academy was able to grind out a solid victory over Del Norte in their previous meeting back in February of 2024, winning 74-62. Will Albuquerque Academy repeat their success, or does Del Norte have a new game plan this time around? We'll find out soon enough.