The Tucumcari Rattlers were undone Thursday night by a series of three-pointers by the Des Moines Demons. The Rattlers lost 68-57. “We lost to a good team tonight,” said Rattlers coach John Span said. “They play well together and you could see that on the floor.” It was not a lack of effort that kept the Rattlers trailing throughout the game. Twice in the second half of the game the Rattlers were able to move within five points after trailing by as much as 16. Scoring from Rattlers senior Andrez Apodaca in the final period shortened the Demons lead to 6. However, the Demons were quick to reclaim their lead with what seemed like supernatural three-pointers. The Demons sunk two three-pointers back-to-back shifting offensive rhythm and rebuilding their lead. “They shot the ball well, sometimes they were hitting shots from spots that you would not expect,” Span said. Despite being down by 16 points again, the Rattlers played through the last second, chipping the Demons lead down to 9 points. “It seemed like every time we were coming back, they would hit a couple of three-pointers and pull ahead,” Apodaca said. The team is making the best of these tough games and using them to prepare them for district, Span said. “This is all going to help us to work better as a team,” Apodaca said. Game Leaders Rattlers Andrez Apodaca 21 points Tyler Loftis 16 points Demons Casey Kennedy 25 points Tabor Martinez 14 points 3, three-pointers Girls varsity The Lady Rattlers lost 43-31 to the Lady Demons Thursday night. Lady Rattlers coach Gary Hittson said he was pleased at the team’s persistence. “They played their hardest tonight,” Hittson said. “They kept fighting all the way through the game and did not give up.” Game leaders Rattlers Mariah Meier 11 points Demons Amairs Newkirk 18 points The Rattlers next game is 4 p.m. today against the Raton Tigers at Tucumcari.