Basketball Recap: El Rancho Skates Past Bell Gardens with Ease

Dons

Margin (Wins)

12/12/24 @ Bell Gardens	40
12/05/24 vs Arroyo	40
12/03/24 @ Edgewood	25
12/10/24 @ Rosemead	8
12/06/24 vs Santa Fe	-29

A well-balanced attack led El Rancho over Bell Gardens in every quarter on their way to victory on Thursday. Given that consistent dominance, it should come as no surprise that the El Rancho Dons blew the Bell Gardens Lancers out of the water with a 51-11 final score. The Dons have made a habit of sweeping their opponents off the court, having now won nine matchups by 21 points or more this season.

El Rancho found their leader in sophomore Emery Riker, who almost dropped a double-double on 19 points and nine rebounds. What's more, Riker also racked up four assists, the most she's had since back in December of 2023. Another player making a difference was Alexis Saucillo, who posted four points in addition to five rebounds and three steals.

El Rancho's win was their fourth straight on the road dating back to last season, which pushed their record up to 12-1. They've dominated over that stretch too, winning by an average of 23.5 points. As for Bell Gardens, they have traveled a rocky road recently having lost five of their last six contests, which put a noticeable dent in their 2-8 record this season.

Both squads are looking forward to the support of their home crowds in their upcoming games. El Rancho won't have much time to rest: their next game is against San Gabriel at 6:30 p.m. on Friday. El Rancho is facing San Gabriel at the right time seeing as San Gabriel is stuck on a four-game losing streak. Bell Gardens will take on La Canada in a holiday battle at 5:00 p.m. on Tuesday at. The teams are on pretty different trajectories at the moment (La Canada has five straight victories, Bell Gardens has four straight defeats), but none of that matters once you're on the court.