Moon Valley downs Cactus to advance to the playoffs
In a must-win game on Thursday night, the Moon Valley Rockets defeated the Cactus Cobras 45-31 to advance to the playoff bracket. Moon Valley went into the game ranked no. 15, while Cactus entered it ranked no. 18 overall for…
Access all of Prep Girls Hoops
Continue reading this article and more.
Continue ReadingIn a must-win game on Thursday night, the Moon Valley Rockets defeated the Cactus Cobras 45-31 to advance to the playoff bracket. Moon Valley went into the game ranked no. 15, while Cactus entered it ranked no. 18 overall for the 4A division.
The Rockets jumped out to an early 12-5 lead at the end of the first quarter, showing the Cobras that this was their house. Cactus struggled to pick the pace up in the second quarter, only tacking on five more points in those eight minutes, resulting in them being down at the half 21-10.
Cactus started picking the pace up a bit in the second half, scoring ten points in the third quarter, but the Rockets were able to match them point-for-point, keeping it an 11-point game. Moon Valley was able to pull away in the fourth quarter, sealing the deal to survive and advance.
The Rockets made it tough for Cactus to get the ball moving around, as they played solid defense and forced a number of deflections and turnovers on the night.
For the Rockets, senior Brandy Thompson Ruiz was a huge difference maker in the game. She had 16 points on the night, with 12 of them coming from being the arc. Junior Yvette Ruiz also had an outstanding game and was all over the court for the Rockets helping out, putting up 10 points on the night.
Two players on the roster you’ll want to keep an eye on are freshman Maya Land and sophomore Lauryn Schumann. They have the potential to be the next big players for this school should they continue to develop and growing the rest of this season and into the off season.
Moon Valley will now wait for the AIA to release the playoff bracket to find out who they’ll face next week, but expect it to be a road game for the Rockets.