Basketball Recap: Rio Rancho Falls Short of Sandia in the Playoffs

Rio Rancho and Sandia squared off in some playoff action on Saturday, but Rio Rancho had to settle for second. They took a 71-53 bruising from the Sandia Matadors. The result was an unpleasant reminder to the Rams of the 72-62 defeat they experienced in the pair's previous head-to-head fixture back in January of 2024.

Dashon Bynum

Points

03/08/25 vs Sandia	16
02/25/25 @ Farmington	10
02/21/25 vs Cleveland	6
02/19/25 vs Piedra Vista	4
02/14/25 vs Cibola	4
+ 9 more games

Despite the loss, Rio Rancho had strong showings from Kevin Archuleta, who shot 50% from the field en route to 15 points and five boards, and Dashon Bynum, who went 5-for-10 on his way to 16 points and six rebounds. Bynum continues to improve, besting his previous point total in each of the last three games he's played. Another player making a difference was Jordan McNeely, who posted eight points.

It was another big night for Zaire Ndyabagye, who went 10-for-12 to rack up 24 points in addition to eight boards and five assists for Sandia. Ndyabagye is also on a roll when it comes to shooting accuracy, as he's posted one of at least 50% in the last six games he's played. Isaiah Brown was another key player, putting up 16 points and three steals.

This is the second loss in a row for Rio Rancho and nudges their season record down to 15-13. As for Sandia, the victory was the tenth in a row for them, bringing their record for this year to 25-3.

Rio Rancho does not have any more games scheduled as of now. As for Sandia, they will take on Albuquerque at 1:15 p.m. on Wednesday. Sandia is strutting in with some offensive muscle as they've averaged 76.3 points per game this season.