The Las Cruces Bulldawgs and the Piedra Vista Panthers will face off at 11:00 a.m. on Saturday without much rest having both just played. The two teams are strolling into their matches after big wins in their previous games.
Las Cruces saw some tournament action on Friday. They simply couldn't be stopped as they easily beat El Dorado 63-23. The Bulldawgs have made a habit of sweeping their opponents off the court, having now won six contests by 26 points or more this season.
| 12/27/24 vs El Dorado | 5 |
| 12/26/24 vs Riverside | 4 |
| 12/20/24 vs Cleveland | 2 |
| 12/17/24 vs Deming | 3 |
| 12/14/24 vs Organ Mountain | 2 |
Bethzy Quinones was her usual excellent self, going 8 of 14 on her way to 17 points along with five assists and five steals. Quinones is crushing it when it comes to steals: she's grabbed at least two every time she's taken the court this season. The team also got some help courtesy of Danae Pacheco, who went 6 for 10 en route to 15 points.
Las Cruces smashed the offensive glass and finished the game with 15 offensive boards. The team's really been improving in that area: they've now improved their offensive rebound total in three consecutive games.
Meanwhile, it was a proper cat-fight when Piedra Vista faced off against Alamogordo on Friday. Piedra Vista was the clear victor by a 62-41 margin over Alamogordo. Given the Panthers' advantage in MaxPreps' New Mexico basketball rankings (they are ranked 34th, while the Tigers are ranked 97th), the result wasn't entirely unexpected.
Las Cruces better focus on containing Tyra Holyan and Jaime Pierce as the pair were huge in Piedra Vista's win. Holyan went 9 of 15 on her way to 24 points and eight rebounds, while Pierce posted 16 points in addition to four blocks and three steals. That makes it three consecutive games in which Holyan has scored at least a third of Piedra Vista's points. The team also got some help courtesy of Kira Westbrook, who had seven points.
Las Cruces is on a roll lately: they've won five of their last six matchups, which provided a nice bump to their 7-4 record this season. Those victories came thanks to their offensive performance across that stretch, as they averaged 58.5 points per game. As for Piedra Vista, they now have a winning record of 5-4.
Rebounding is likely to be a big factor in this contest: Las Cruces has been smashing the glass this season, having averaged 23.6 boards per game. However, it's not like Piedra Vista struggles in that department as they've been averaging 27 rebounds. With both teams battling to corral missed shots, we'll see if one team can grab an edge.
Las Cruces took a serious blow against Piedra Vista in their previous matchup back in December of 2018, falling 72-25. Thankfully for Las Cruces, Lanae Billy (who went 8 of 13 on her way to 23 points in addition to eight rebounds and four steals) won't be suiting up this time. Will that be enough to change the final result? There's only one way to find out.
