Rio Rancho wins tournament in a thriller vs. Volcano Vista

RIO RANCHO – The game-winning shot did not unfold as diagrammed. And it was authored by a player who didn’t even think he’d be in uniform.

So it was that Rio Rancho fashioned a thrilling victory in the championship game of its own Holiday Hoops Classic.

Cayden Richardson, questionable to even play after a Tuesday ankle injury, scored on a length-of-the-floor drive with 5 seconds remaining, and No. 4-ranked Rio Rancho (8-0) beat No. 3 Volcano Vista 68-67 in a marvelous matchup between District 1-5A rivals Wednesday afternoon.

“I just felt like I had an open lane. The play wasn’t designed like that, but I saw the open lane and took it all the way down,” Richardson said. He led the Rams with 18 points.

As the calendar flips from December to January, this one had all the energy of a fevered Pit game in March, and it was a riveting valedictory for 2025.

“Oh man, I tell you what, if that doesn’t get your blood pumping and excited for what may come in March … ” Rio Rancho coach Steve Heredia said.

Junior David Lunn of the Hawks put Volcano Vista in front 67-66 with a four-footer off the glass with 13.3 seconds remaining. Those were the last of his 36 points in a fantastic performance.

Rio Rancho called timeout.

The ball was inbounded to Richardson, and the 6-foot-5 senior raced about 80 feet the other way, and got his big frame to the rack, where he finished from close range off the glass.

Nobody from Volcano Vista (7-2) intervened. Richardson said he was surprised by this.

“We were surprised, too,” Hawks coach Greg Brown said. Lunn's 40-foot desperation heave at the buzzer was off the mark.

Richardson, named the tournament most valuable player, was an unexpected starter. He turned his left ankle during a walkthrough on Tuesday prior to the Rams’ semifinal against Sandia, and did not play in that contest. Heredia said he was doubtful to return for Wednesday's final.

“I was supposed to be out for two weeks,” Richardson said. “But I went to a doctor this morning, and she kind of got me better, good enough to play.”

He was taking a chance, he admitted.

“I felt good enough to give it a run,” he said. “It was definitely a risk, but it’s a big game and I wanted to be out here.”

Had anyone from Volcano Vista gotten in his way on the deciding shot, Richardson said, he’d simply have kicked it to a teammate.

“We tell these guys all the time, don’t be robots, be basketball players,” Heredia said. “It doesn’t matter what we draw up. At some point, you have to decide to make a play and that’s exactly what C-Rich did.”

Brown said Volcano Vista’s defensive execution throughout was not up to par for the Hawks’ standards, including at the end.

“If that happens late in a game like that,” he said, “we don’t deserve to win.”

The entertaining game featured nine lead changes and six ties. Volcano Vista’s largest lead was nine, in the game’s opening minutes. The Rams’ largest lead was five.

The first half was superb at both ends. The teams traded late 3s and Rio Rancho led 35-34.

The second half was tighter, more physical, and featured many more fouls and free throws.

To that end, free throws were certainly a factor. Rio Rancho made 26 out of 30, including 11-for-12 in the fourth quarter. For example, twice in the last quarter the Hawks fouled Jordan McNeely on a 3-point try and he connected on all six free throws.

The four-time defending Class 5A state champion Hawks, by contrast, were 14-for-19 from the stripe.

Both teams have a quick turnaround, with the Albuquerque Metro Championships scheduled next week. For Rio Rancho, it was the first time this season it was involved in a close game; its previous seven victories were all by at least 11 points.

But this one, against a district rival, against the four-time defending champs, in the final of its own tournament, had Rio Rancho feeling especially puffed up.

“It was amazing,” Richardson said.

NOTE: Sandia defeated Navajo Prep 58-49 for third place. Matadors sophomore guard Isaiah Brown scored 19 points, and is now over 1,000 points for his career at Sandia.