Rams, Lady Rams defeat Texico

TEXICO – Portales High brought the perfect season for Texico's boys to an end on Tuesday night as the Rams defeated the Wolverines 61-49.

Senior guard Joel Lujan hit three 3-pointers and tallied 18 points for the the Class 4A Rams (6-9), who pulled away from a 9-9 tie at the quarter to lead by eight at halftime. Six-foot-5 junior forward/center Carson Pfaffenberger added 10 points for Portales.

Senior Alex Fuentes was the top scorer for Texico (9-1), ranked No. 1 in Class 2A, with 15 points.

Portales 54, Texico 26 (girls) – Senior guard Myleigh Banda scored 21 points and the Lady Rams (8-8) took an 11-5 lead at the end of a quarter and steadily pulled away.

Senior guard Angel Ornelas added 15 points for the Lady Rams, who reached the .500 mark for the first time this season since they were 1-1.

Texico (6-4) was paced by junior Macy Cline with 13 points.

La Cueva 92, Clovis High 68 (boys) – The Wildcats had a long ride out to Albuquerque on Tuesday, and an even longer ride back Tuesday night.

La Cueva put four players in double figures and used a big second quarter to post a 92-68 victory over the Wildcats.

Leading by just four points, the Bears (8-7) outscored the Cats 29-13 in the second frame to open a 20-point halftime cushion. Senior guard Tre Cowles and junior forward Hunter Butler, both of whom finished with 21 points, had nine and seven in that stanza, respectively.

Sophomore guard Drew Bramlett added 13 points and junior forward/guard Chase Roberts added 12 for the Bears. La Cueva knocked down nine 3-pointers in the match, including three each by Cowles and Bramlett.

Senior guard Jayden Cox led the Cats with 23 points, while junior guard Jaden Tapia had 20 and junior forward Clifton Brown posted eight. Cox went 6-for-7 for the Cats from the line, while Tapia converted four of the team's five 3-point shots.