Basketball Recap: Portales Piles Up the Points Against Moriarty

Rams

Previous 6 Games

01/27/25 vs Moriarty	73-38
01/25/25 vs Tularosa	70-56
01/23/25 @ New Mexico Military Institute	52-50
01/18/25 @ Alamogordo	66-64
01/14/25 @ Texico	61-49
01/04/25 vs Eunice	71-40

Portales had already won five in a row (a stretch where they outscored their opponents by an average of 12.2 points) and they went ahead and made it six on Monday. They blew past the Moriarty Pintos 73-38. That's the second time they've managed to beat them this season, as they also won 63-26 back in December of 2024.

Portales' success was the result of a balanced attack that saw several players step up, but Elijah Tellez led the charge by putting up 13 points and three steals. Those 13 points gave Tellez a new career-high. Carson Pfaffenberger was another key player, going 6 for 12 on his way to 16 points and six rebounds.

Portales was working as a unit and finished the game with 20 assists. That's the most assists they've managed all season.

Several Pintos players turned in solid performances despite ultimately coming up short. Perhaps the best among those players was Jordan Brown, who posted 13 points. That was a full 34.2% of Moriarty's points, marking the eighth time in a row he's put up more than a third of the team's points. Another player making a difference was Aidyn Pacheco, who had 11 points and three steals.

Portales' victory was their third straight at home, which pushed their record up to 10-9. The wins came thanks to their offensive performance across that stretch, as they averaged 71.3 points per game. As for Moriarty, they have been struggling recently as they've lost four of their last five games, which put a noticeable dent in their 7-12 record this season.

Both teams are looking forward to the support of their home crowds in their upcoming games. Portales has already played their next contest (against Goddard), but no score has been uploaded at the time of writing. Moriarty will welcome Taos at 7:00 p.m. on Thursday. Taos knows how to get points on the board -- the squad has finished with 55 points or more in their past seven matchups -- so hopefully Moriarty likes a good challenge.