EHS back to winning ways
Eagles fight off Sandia in 2-6A
Sometimes, a little addition by subtraction can be a healthy thing.
The Eldorado girls basketball team, a bona fide Class 6A contender, suffered two hiccups at the end of the recent metro tournament, leaving them slightly perturbed. But, perhaps, it was a brief lull that served the greater good.
“It galvanized them,” Eldorado coach Matt Dixson said. “They realized that everyone wants to come out and punch us in the mouth, and we weren’t used to that.”
In an early District 2-6A showdown Saturday afternoon, Sandia stepped in with its gloves on, looking to stamp itself as a viable challenger to Eldorado. But guard Vivian Chavez hit a tie-breaking 3-pointer with 2:37 remaining, and the Eagles claimed a tight, 45-41 victory over the Matadors.
“They’re a really good team,” Eldorado senior guard Sydney Candelaria said of Sandia. “It’s a good win coming off those two losses in metros.”
The first of those was a semifinal setback to West Mesa, a game the Eagles led by double figures in the second half. Two days later, La Cueva beat Eldorado in the third-place game.
“We’re a good team,” Candelaria observed of the lesson learned from that mini-slump, “but we’re not necessarily as good as we think.”
The Matadors (13-3, 1-1) on Saturday were in terrific shape early, leading 17-9 midway through the second quarter. But Sandia went scoreless over the final four minutes of the half, while Eldorado (13-3, 2-0) went on a 9-0 run to lead 18-17 at halftime.
Eldorado extended to a sevenpoint lead midway through the third quarter but Sandia clawed back and eventually tied the game itself at 39 after Cara Liggins’ 3-pointer. But the Matadors didn’t finish the second half much better than they closed the first half, with only two points over the final 3:56.
Shelby Bloom had 12 points to lead Eldorado. Candelaria was held in check for the most part, but finished with 11 and drove to the basket with repeated success after halftime.
Liggins led all scorers with 18 points. Sandia’s three losses this season are by a combined eight points. The other two losses were by two points each.
— James Yodice
LA CUEVA 74, SANTA FE 57: At La Cueva, Brooke Nelson had 16 points and the Bears (10-6, 2-0) had four players in double figures in a 2-6A victory.
DEL NORTE 45, CAPITAL 34: In Santa Fe, the Knights (11-7, 2-0 in 2-5A) had a double-digit lead at halftime and held on.
Boys
ELDORADO 76, SANDIA 65: At Eldorado, sophomore Kameron Valencia had a season-high 25 points for the Eagles.
“Career high,” Valencia corrected with a smile.
Valencia scored 14 of his points in the fourth quarter as the Eagles (11-5, 2-0 in 2-6A) kept Sandia (8-8, 0-2) — which was nipping at Eldorado’s heels the entire second half — at bay.
“That’s the nice thing about this group,” Eldorado coach Roy Sanchez said. “You don’t know who’s gonna have that hot night. Tonight it was Kameron’s night.”
The Matadors led once, 2-0. The game was tied once, at 29-all going into halftime.
Eldorado opened the second half on an 8-0 run, then spent the rest of the second half fending off Sandia’s comeback attempts.
The Matadors had an 8-0 run of their own to get within a point at 59-58 with 5:08 to go.
But Valencia buried two free throws, and also added two medium-range jump shots as the Eagles countered with an 8-0 run for a 67-58 advantage.
“We try to find who’s hot and get good shots, and when we do that, we’re a good team,” Valencia said.
For Sandia, it’s a tough start to district. This loss comes on the heels of a crushing 1-point loss to Santa Fe on Tuesday.
— James Yodice VOLCANO VISTA 62, ABQ ACADEMY 51: At Academy, sophomore Cesar Madrid had a team-best 12 points for the Hawks, who played without forward David Cormier, who visited Navy this weekend.
HOPE CHRISTIAN 74, NMMI 26: The Huskies had a 50-point first half and cruised to a District 4-4A win over the Colts.