Demons can’t overcome slow start in loss
HOBBS — Following a 15-year absence, the Santa Fe High boys’ basketball team made a return to the Hobbs Holiday Tournament on Thursday afternoon. While losing 58-44 to Hirschi, Texas, in Tasker Arena wasn’t what Demons head coach Zack Cole hoped for, he was pleased with what he got out of his team in the second half.
“We just couldn’t string together consecutive stops in the fourth quarter,” Cole said. “We would get a stop and then score, but then we would give up a basket. We had a hard time stringing together some consecutive stops there in the fourth quarter. But, I was very proud of our effort from our boys in the second half.”
The Demons were slow to get their offense going. Santa Fe High trailed 9-0 before Diego Salinas scored the Demons first points of the game on a layup with 2:56 left in the opening quarter. When the first eight minutes were over, Santa Fe High trailed 14-7.
Hirschi (8-4) pushed its lead to 33-19 in the second quarter as the Huskies outscored the Demons 19-12.
Santa Fe High (5-7) had its best run in the third quarter. At one point in the third, the Demons trailed by 18 points before closing the quarter on an 8-0 run, cutting the deficit to 43-33. They sank only four field goals in the quarter, but they were all 3-pointers.
“We called a timeout and challenged the kids to win the last two minutes of that quarter,” Cole said. “We did that. We went on an 8-0 run. Our goal was to be within single digits by the end of the third, but 10 is pretty close to our goal.”
That was as close as Santa Fe high would get, though.
Hirschi’s offense picked back up in the fourth, outscoring the Demons 15-11. Senior Victor Salcido tried to keep Santa Fe High close, scoring seven of his team’s 11 points in the fourth. Salcido also led the Demons in scoring, dropping in 13 points, 10 of which came in the second half.
“He had a rough first half and he still ended with 13,” Cole said. “He was frustrated. He is one of our better scorers. He got some good looks in the first half like we wanted him to get and they just weren’t falling. So I was really proud of him for not letting it keep him down. He really came in and asserted himself in the second half.”
Rashad Green led Hirschi with 22 points while Javen Banks chipped in 12 for the Huskies.
Santa Fe High returns to the Tasker Arena at 9:45 a.m. Friday as it takes on Rio Rancho Cleveland, which lost to Albuquerque Eldorado 80-71 in another first-round game.
“It’s all about making the playoffs,” Cole said. “We are playing a team [Friday] that is a 6A opponent and they are a good enough team to challenge for a district championship. Those are things that the selection committee takes into consideration when they are seeding for playoffs.”
SHIPROCK 54, TAOS 16
The Lady Chieftains were stingy with points, as they didn’t allow a single point in the first quarter, on their way to a 9-0 lead.
It didn’t get much better after that, as Shiprock (7-7) grew its lead to 21-2 at the half and 37-3 heading into the final quarter. Taos (4-5) finally found its offense in the fourth quarter, scoring 13 points, but it was too little, too late.
Shiprock’s Alisha Wilson led all scorers with 10 points, Mikayla Charley added nine for the Lady Chieftains while Evette Lansing and Mylie McKinley each scored eight points. Taos’ Aaliyah Quintana led the Lady Tigers with eight points. Quintana had two treys in the fourth quarter as well as sinking Taos’ first bucket of the game in the second quarter.
Taos will play Lovington on the consolation side of the bracket at 8 a.m. Friday.