AREA BASKETBALL: Magdalena Steers still rolling

Class A basketball's No. 7 Cliff (12-4) decided to play a slow-down game against No. 3 Magdalena (15-4) on Saturday. The Cowboys' strategy backfired as they played right into the Steers' hands for a 43-34 District 1-1A victory.

"That's the funny part (slow play) because that's who we are. If a team wants to come in and say, oh, it's Magdalena, we're going to slow them down. Thank you very much," Steers coach Jory Mirabal said. "That's what we're trying to do anyway. I feel like we can play both speeds. When you're playing different speeds, you have different types of outcomes, and we're not out here trying to put 30 on everybody."

Things may be a little different on offense, but the Steers' defense is still choking the life out of their opponents' offenses. The Cowboys netted 15 points through the first three quarters and were down 26-15.

"We're about wins. I don't care if they're one point or 50 points. It doesn't matter to me. We'll respect every opponent that comes in. What we need to try to do is to get the W. That's what it's about," Mirabal said.

The Cowboys were able to open up their offensive game a little in the fourth quarter, but Cliff also had to foul to try to get possession, and the Steers' Jack Markland made them pay. Markland hit 8-of-9 freebies, leading to a team-high 13 points.

Magdalena returns to its home court on Feb. 6 against Reserve (7 p.m.) and again on Feb. 8 against Animas (3 p.m.)

Scoring - EJ Lucero, Ayden Herschbach 10, Javen Tafoya, Nathan Bruton, Paul Chavez Lopez, Jeff Stuteville 4, Shane Montoya 2, Joseph Zamora 8, Kaanan Stephens, Zeb Apachito, Jacob Markland 13, Ky Stephens 6, Kobe Mexicano, Risland Piasso, Othello Apachito.

Lady Cougars

Coach Bill Green's Lady Cougars are struggling with low numbers and inexperience in what looks like a rebuilding year for Navajo Alamo's girls basketball program. Several players have left the team, leading to promotions from the junior varsity.

The lack of players made a massive difference because five days after beating Mountainair 56-44 in tournament action, Alamo lost to the same team at home 58-44, despite a solid 15 points from Shalaysha Guerro.

"We were very short-handed, and our girls played with a lot of heart. I was proud of our girls. Our younger girls really couldn't handle the press at a varsity level," Green said. "But it was a good experience for them. You look out there, and all those girls are going to be playing next year. They're going to be okay.

Scoring - Butterfly Secatero 7, Sapphira Sandoval, Tisha Mexicano 2, Manisha Monte, Ania Torres, Detriana Vandaveer 2, Shalaysha Guerro 15, Lashay Guerro 4, Layla Apache 11, Marshayla Herrera 2.

Alamo Cougars

Played in front of a heavy law enforcement presence, Alamo Navajo's 17-game district winning streak was snapped on Jan. 23 as Mountainair handed the Cougars a 63-42 loss. The Cougars hadn't lost a district contest since Feb. 26, 2022.

It was a revenge matchup for Mountainair after a 55-41 loss to the Cougars in tournament play on Feb. 18. That contest got heated, which is why the Navajo Nation Police and the Socorro Sheriff's Department were on hand on Thursday.

For whatever reason, coach Lemuel Guerro's team played off-pace, and turnovers cost the Cougars.

Lady Warriors

The Lady Warriors (0-15) are still looking for their first win of the season, and they have one home date remaining before the start of District 3-3A basketball. Socorro plays host to Bosque at 2:30 p.m. on Feb. 1, travels to Hatch Valley on Feb. 4, and returns home to host Cobre on Feb. 2 at 5:30 p.m.

Getting into league action might be good news for Socorro because it's a down year in District 3-3A with Cobre at 8-11, Hot Springs at 6-13 and Hatch Valley at 2-15.

Warriors

Coach Tim Townsend started out with 11 players on his varsity roster, and the first-year coach has stuck to his guns when it comes to accountability. On Saturday, eight Warriors suited up to play, and two of them were junior varsity promotions.

At the start of the season, Socorro lost a tight 59-57 game to NMMI, but things have changed personnel-wise, and the Warriors were on the wrong end of a 75-37 score against that same NMMI team on Saturday.