Benally, Giddings lead Sandia past Hobbs

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. — The Sandia Matadors open the 2024-25 season with a 53-48 win at home.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The Saturday evening meeting was a highly anticipated matchup that featured seven of the top twenty players from the 2025 class. Additionally this was seen by many as a preview for a potential Championship showdown between Hobbs and Sandia.&nbsp;Both squads are heavily favored to be in contention for the 5A title and will likely have their respective teams as one of the top seeds come March 2025.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>With that in mind, it is Sandia, the defending 5A State Champions, currently sitting at 1-0.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Despite facing an early 11-0 deficit, Sandia was able to settle in and answer back. The Matadors ended the 1st-Quarter on a 21-2 run, which was ultimately the difference in the game.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Heading into halftime, Sandia led 29-22. After 24 minutes (End of 3rd quarter) Sandia was up 41-33.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The Matadors were led by [player_tooltip player_id='391103' first='Sydney' last='Benally'], a 5'9” senior point-guard and Pinceton University commit. Benally happens to also be the reigning Gatorade Player of the Year and the No. 2 ranked Player in New Mexico. Moreover, Benally is a four-Star prospect ranked No. 88 in the <a href="https://www.espn.com/high-school/girls-basketball/recruiting/rankings/_/class/2025">HoopGurlz 2025 rankings</a>.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Benally finished with a game-high 25 points, with 18 coming in the first half. Benally had it going from behind the arc, making several three-pointers with ease. The Senior was lethal in catch and shoot situations and out in isolation. Late in the 2nd-Quarter, Benally faced up along the baseline and used a killer jab-step before pulling the trigger on a corner trey. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Fellow senior [player_tooltip player_id='391104' first='Hope' last='Giddings'], tallied 16 points. The 5'9” shooting-guard is a next-level prospect in her own right, holding 5 total collegiate offers. Giddings did a phenomenal job of making plays inside the paint area, coming away with several tough finishes in traffic. Furthermore Giddings was able to capitalize off timely cuts and miss-matches, earning multiple trips to the charity stripe.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The Eagles were led by [player_tooltip player_id='458555' first='Bhret' last='Clay'], a 5'9” senior shooting-guard and Air Force commit. Clay had a team-high 18 points, showcasing the ability to score in a variety of ways. Clay knocked down jumpers beyond the arc and in the mid-range, while also getting buckets when posting-up. The 18 point outing now makes Clay a member of the 1,000 point-club!&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='458556' first='Brynn' last='Hargrove'] was the only other Eagles player in double-figures. The 5'6” senior point-guard and NMHU commit, chipped in with 10 points, doing most of her damage from the foul-line. However, Hargrove did manage to nail a three-pointer from the left-wing running a DHO action.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>NEXT UP:&nbsp;</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Sandia (1-0) @ Atrisco Heritage (0-0) on 12/3 | 7 p.m.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Hobbs (0-1) vs Mayfield (0-0) on 11/26 | 6 p.m.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->