Preview: Bernalillo Spartans vs. Del Norte Knights
The Bernalillo Spartans will be playing at home against the Del Norte Knights at 7:00 p.m. on Friday. Given that the pair suffered a loss in their last game, they both have a little extra motivation heading into this contest.
On Tuesday, Bernalillo lost to Hope Christian on the road by a decisive 64-47 margin. The loss unfortunately continues a disappointing trend for Bernalillo in their matchups with Hope Christian: they've now lost five in a row.
Meanwhile, Del Norte's recent rough patch got a bit rougher on Saturday after their fourth straight loss. They were the victim of a rough 74-50 defeat at the hands of La Cueva. While losing is never fun, Del Norte can't take it too hard given the team's big disadvantage in MaxPreps' New Mexico basketball rankings (they are ranked 78th, while La Cueva is ranked sixth).
Despite the defeat, Del Norte saw an underclassman step up: Julian Castillo scored 22 points along with three steals. As a matter of fact, that's the most points Castillo has scored all season. The team also got some help courtesy of Francois Satchivi, who scored 14 points along with five rebounds.
Bernalillo has been struggling recently, as they've lost three of their last four matchups, which put a noticeable dent in their 9-9 record this season. As for Del Norte, their defeat dropped their record down to 4-14.
Bernalillo was able to grind out a solid victory over Del Norte in their previous meeting back in December of 2023, winning 68-58. One of the biggest obstacles the team faced in that game was Satchivi, who scored 16 points along with five assists and five steals. Now that he's got a second chance to win this matchup, will Bernalillo still be able to contain him? Check MaxPreps.com after the match to find out.
