Girls basketball

What happened: The press was the Lady Matadors’ best friend, as they unleashed it in the latter stages of the opening quarter to break out to a 20-8 lead in a District 5-5A game Thursday at Sandia. Then, the Demonettes struggled to score in the second quarter, getting just two buckets from Ari Hernandez as the deficit grew to 27-12 at the half.

Sandia star Viane Cumber exploded for 12 third-quarter points and finished with 24 to lead the Lady Matadors (12-4 overall, 2-0 in 5-5A).

“We handled the ball [in the second quarter],” Demonettes head coach Nate Morris said. “We just couldn’t score. We went into a slump. Defensively, we did a good job on Cumber. Offensively, our shots didn’t fall.”

Standouts: Alexis Espinoza and Heaven Martinez each had seven points for Santa Fe High.

What’s next: The Demonettes (8-9, 1-1) head to Las Vegas, N.M., to take on Robertson on Saturday.

What happened: The Lady Jaguars got off to a slow start, trailing 36-21 at the half of a 5-5A game at Bulldog City, and their second-half rally fell short. The Lady Bulldogs duo of Tiara Pendleton and Leilani Love combined for 34 points, and they went 10-for-16 at the free-throw line. In all, Albuquerque High (6-8, 2-0) hit 26 of 37 shots at the line and were 10-for-14 in the fourth quarter.

Standouts: Ethena Silva scored seven points in the third quarter, as Capital cut the margin to 51-40 after three quarters. She had 12 of her 22 points in the second half. Rebaca Sorensen added 12 and Heaven Arciniega scored 10. Love led the way for the Lady Bulldogs with 18 points, and Pendleton added 16. Marisa Madrid had 10.

What’s next: Capital (6-12, 1-1) plays 5-5A leader Albuquerque Sandia on Jan. 29.