Basketball Game Preview: Sangre de Cristo Thunderbirds vs. McClave Cardinals

The Sangre de Cristo Thunderbirds will face off against the McClave Cardinals at 3:00 p.m. on Friday.

Sangre de Cristo's tournament run continued when they took on Del Norte on Saturday. Sangre de Cristo fell 45-38 to Del Norte.

Meanwhile, McClave entered their tilt with Wiley on Thursday with three consecutive wins , and they'll enter their next game with four. Everything went their way against the Panthers as they made off with a 60-36 victory. The Cardinals have made a habit of sweeping their opponents off the court, having now won 14 matchups by 24 points or more this season.

McClave's win came from a few key players Sangre de Cristo will need to keep an eye on. One of the most notable was Tuff Kelley, who dropped a double-double with 15 points and 14 boards. The game was his third in a row with at least 15 points. Another player making a difference was Ethan Bronniman, who almost dropped a double-double with 15 points and nine rebounds.

McClave smashed the offensive glass and finished the game with 20 offensive boards. That's the most offensive rebounds they've posted since back in January of 2024.

McClave's win bumped their record up to 20-3. As for Sangre de Cristo, their loss dropped their record down to 12-10.