Rams roll over East Mountain

STAFF WRITER

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SANDIA PARK — Another district game, another win for both basketball teams from Portales.

This time the Rams and Lady Rams defeated their District 4-4A rival East Mountain in impressive fashion. The first was a 72-13 shellacking by the Lady Rams while the boys dominated the Timberwolves in an 82-67 shootout.

The Lady Rams (18-3, 2-0 district) were in complete control from the start. By halftime, Portales had a 35-point lead, which meant a running clock the rest of the way as long as the margin stayed that big or larger.

But even with the clock never stopping, Portales continued to add to its lead.

Lady Rams coach Wade Fraze was happy with the win, but said his team was far from perfect.

“We had 13 turnovers. That’s way too many,” he said. “We got in too big a hurry when we got steals and gave the ball right back. We didn’t shoot very well from the free throw line either. But other than those two things, we got to play deep and give our kids some experience.”

Kambrey Blakey (15), Linsday Blakey (12) and Bailey Rowley (10) all reached double figures for the Lady Rams, and a total of 10 players scored.

However, scoring wasn’t all that Portales did in this win. Zamorye Cox led the team with 12 assists, while Rowley pulled down six rebounds and Sheraya Cox recorded five steals.

As for the Lady Timberwolves (12-7, 0-1), it was simply a struggle as Portales jumped out to a 20-0 lead after the first quarter. Ryann Warren led East Mountain with four points, and the Lady Timberwolves made just four total field goals.

On the boys side, the results were similar, just not as lopsided. Portales (13-9, 3-0) used a 29-point second quarter to build to a 47-25 lead.

“We were in control the whole game,” Portales coach Rickie McBroom said. “I felt like in the first half our press gave us some easy baskets. This is a tough road trip for us. We had some foul trouble in the third quarter. Jeremie (Karngbaye) picked up his fourth foul in the third quarter so he only played six minutes in the second half.”

Even with limited minutes in the second half, Karngbaye was dominant, finishing with 20 points and 20 rebounds. Meantime, Bronte Staugaard scored 21 points and Jordan Davis added 15.

Davis added eight rebounds while Staugaard and Junior Ramirez and Staugaard each collected five assists. As a team, Portales held a 41-27 rebounding edge over the Timberwolves.

“I think we’re rebounding real well and making free throws and being unselfish,” McBroom said. “A lot of kids are contributing.

“We have to work on sustaining our defense in the second half as our intensity drops a little. If we fix that, we can play much better.”

It was the lower intensity in the second half that allowed East Mountain (7-15, 1-1) to stay in the game. Aidan Aragon led the Timberwolves with 30 points as East Mountain outscored Portales 42-35 in the final two quarters.

The Rams and Lady Rams return district play on Tuesday with games against Ruidoso at the Ram Athletic Center, with the girls tipping off first at 5:30 p.m.