Basketball Game Preview: Bosque Bobcats vs. Tucumcari Rattlers

After both having extra time off, the Bosque Bobcats and the Tucumcari Rattlers will dust off their jerseys to face off against one another at 5:00 p.m. on Saturday. Bosque is coming into the matchup hot, having won their last four games.

Bosque's tournament run continued when they took on Cuba last Saturday. Bosque came out on top against Cuba by a score of 50-40. Given the Bobcats' advantage in MaxPreps' New Mexico basketball rankings (they are ranked 33rd, while the Rams are ranked 107th), the result wasn't entirely unexpected.

Among those leading the charge was Jordan Kruft, who went 5 for 8 on his way to 13 points. Those 13 points gave him a new career-high. The team also got some help courtesy of Oliver Tumolo, who dropped a double-double on ten points and 12 boards.

Bosque smashed the offensive glass and finished the game with 14 offensive rebounds. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now pulled down at least eight offensive boards in nine consecutive contests.

Meanwhile, Tucumcari escaped with a win back in December of 2024 against Jal by the margin of a single free throw, 52-51.

Tucumcari has been performing well recently as they've won three of their last four games, which provided a nice bump to their 5-4 record this season. Those victories came thanks to their offensive performance across that stretch, as they averaged 59.8 points per game. As for Bosque, their record is now 8-2.

Everything came up roses for Bosque against Tucumcari in their previous matchup back in January of 2024, as the squad secured a 90-40 victory. One of the biggest obstacles the team faced in that game was Tucumcari's Kamren Apodaca, who dropped a double-double on 17 points and ten boards. Now that he's got a second chance to win this matchup, will Bosque still be able to contain Apodaca? There's only one way to find out.