Basketball Game Preview: Sandia Matadors vs. La Cueva Bears

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Previous Games

03/01/25 - Home	59-34 W
02/07/25 - Away	65-51 W
01/22/25 - Home	57-39 W
02/16/24 - Home	59-44 W
01/31/24 - Away	45-41 W
+ 5 more games

Sandia and La Cueva are an even 5-5 against one another since February of 2022, but not for long. The Sandia Matadors will challenge the La Cueva Bears at 9:45 a.m. on Thursday. Sandia knows how to get points on the board -- the team has finished with 55 points or more in their past 14 games -- so hopefully La Cueva likes a good challenge.

Sandia is on a roll after a high-stakes playoff matchup on Tuesday. They enjoyed a cozy 60-43 win over Rio Rancho. The victory continues a trend for the Matadors in their matchups with the Rams: they've now won five in a row.

Sandia got their win on the backs of several key players, but it was Kaiyah Benally out in front who went 6-for-8 en route to 16 points and six boards. What's more, Benally also posted a 67% three-point shooting accuracy, which is the highest she's achieved since back in December of 2024. Hope Giddings was another key player, shooting 63% from the field to rack up 15 points and seven rebounds.

Meanwhile, La Cueva faced Mayfield in a battle between two of the state's top teams on Tuesday. La Cueva walked away with a 44-33 victory over Mayfield. The win made it back-to-back victories for the Bears.

Sandia's win bumped their record up to 28-1. As for La Cueva, their victory bumped their record up to 22-7.

Everything went Sandia's way against La Cueva when the teams last played last Saturday, as Sandia made off with a 59-34 win. In that match, Sandia amassed a halftime lead of 41-16, an impressive feat they'll look to repeat on Thursday.