PREP BASKETBALL

No. 1 Rio Rancho takes down No. 2 Cleveland in 1-5A showdown

Rams claim City of Vision crown, but it's just the first of many battles between the rivals

Rio Rancho power forward Cayden Richardson (24) slips past Cleveland's defense during a game at Rio Rancho High School on Wednesday.

Liam DeBonis/for the Albuquerque Journal

James Yodice James Yodice James Yodice Journal Staff Writer

Published February 4, 2026 - 9:43 p.m. Modified February 4, 2026 - 9:47 p.m.

RIO RANCHO – Did this tell us who the top boys basketball team in Class 5A is?

Emphatically, no.

Did this inform us who is going to eventually win District 1-5A?

Of course not. There’s still 2½ weeks yet to sort that out.

Did this determine who rules the City of Vision?

For a night … maybe.

In their first matchup of the season, No. 1 Rio Rancho and No. 2 Cleveland delivered the goods Wednesday night. It wasn’t until the fourth quarter that the Rams found some room to breathe as they turned away the Storm 69-56 before a huge crowd at Rio Rancho in a first-place 1-5A showdown.

“That’s District 1-5A for you,” Rams coach Steve Heredia said. “It’ll be grind until the last three minutes or so. Whoever makes plays is gonna win. Simple.”

On Wednesday, that was Rio Rancho (19-2, 4-1 in 1-5A). The Rams led 50-49 with 5:10 to go, but it was Rio Rancho that made the key plays at both ends down the stretch to finish the Storm (17-4, 3-2),

Kayden Decker and Cayden Richardson, the Rams’ two big, athletic forwards, scored back-to-back baskets for a 54-49 lead, followed by a length-of-the-court, crowd-pleasing drive and finish by Richardson for a 56-49 edge with 3:19 left.

Cleveland did get within two — 58-54 — with 2½ minutes to go, but Decker connected on an 8-footer at the other end to answer. Then Dashon Bynum buried a mid-range jumper, and Noah Lovato scored on a layup for a commanding 64-54 lead, and it was over.

“We played much more unselfish basketball in the fourth quarter,” said Richardson, who scored 17 points. “And we were taking the right shots, kept getting stops and it led to transition buckets.”

Rio Rancho power forward Cayden Richardson (24) leaps to pass to a teammate during a game between Rio Rancho and Cleveland at Rio Rancho High School on Wednesday.

Decker and Richardson combined for 13 points in the fourth quarter, energizing a loud Rio Rancho fan base. It felt like a state tournament atmosphere for nearly the entire way.

“We started slow, but we came out at halftime with more energy and had more focus out there in the third and fourth quarters,’ Decker said. He finished with 13 points.

The first half set the tone, with five ties and five lead changes. The last of those five was a 3-pointer from the top of the key from Storm senior guard Remy Albrecht with 2.7 seconds left in the quarter, which sent Cleveland into the break leading 34-33.

Both teams’ largest lead in the first half was five; the Rams, up 20-15 after a long jumper by Bynum. Albrecht scored seven straight, including a 3, for a 22-19 lead.

A pair of 3s from Rio Rancho’s Jordan McNeely made it 27-24 for the Rams. The half was like this throughout, with punching and counter punching.

As for Albrecht, Cleveland's sensational senior scoring guard, Rio Rancho defended him fairly well on the perimeter in the second half. Albrecht scored 14 points before halftime, only three after halftime.

“We had a game plan to try and contain him and I think we did that really good,” Richardson said, who said the home crowd noise was a factor.

“They give us energy and our team feeds off energy,” he said. “This is what we live for, this is what we play for, high intensity games like this.”The rivals meet again at Cleveland on Feb. 19.

“We did a good job of attacking the rim, attacking the paint,” Heredia said. “It was a very physical game. I thought we did a great job of playing through a lot of contact, and the guys played tough tonight.”