The Sandia Prep Sundevils will challenge the Cuba Rams at 6:30 p.m. on Tuesday. Both teams are coming into the matchup red-hot, with Sandia Prep sitting on three straight wins and Cuba on six.
Last Thursday, Sandia Prep earned a 49-39 victory over Cottonwood Classical Prep.
Sandia Prep's success was spearheaded by the efforts of Madlyn Dopson, who went 10-for-19 on her way to 26 points and four steals, and Taylor Calkins, who posted 11 points and six steals. What's more, Calkins also posted four assists, the most she's had since back in February of 2024. Another player making a difference was Kyrie Lujan, who earned eight points and five assists.
Sandia Prep was working as a unit and finished the game with ten assists. That's a new trend for them: they were averaging 5.5 assists per game earlier this season, but in their last 15 games they've averaged 11.4.
Meanwhile, winning is always nice, but doing so behind a season-high score is even better (just ask Cuba). They simply couldn't be stopped on Thursday as they easily beat Bosque 72-33.
Cuba's win came from a few key players Sandia Prep will need to keep an eye on. One of the most notable was Denale Sandoval, who dropped a double-double with 14 points and 18 rebounds. She is on a roll when it comes to boards, as she's now pulled down eight or more in each of the last seven games she's played. Cara Toledo was another key player, putting up 19 points and five rebounds.
Sandia Prep pushed their record up to 12-10 with the win, which was their fourth straight on the road. The wins came thanks in part to their offensive performance across that stretch, as they averaged 51.5 points over those games. As for Cuba, the victory got them back to even at 12-12.
Rebounding is likely to be a big factor in this contest: Sandia Prep has been smashing the glass this season, having averaged 23.6 boards per game. However, it's not like Cuba struggles in that department as they've been averaging 31.2 rebounds. With both teams battling to corral missed shots, we'll see if one team can grab an edge.
Sandia Prep came up short against Cuba in their previous matchup two weeks ago, falling 40-36. Can Sandia Prep avenge their loss or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.
