While there’s no clear-cut 5A boys favorite, District 1 race will be hot
It can’t be that we’ve already reached the halfway point of the prep basketball season, can it? Oh, it be. District basketball begins for metro-area schools next week. Let’s try and sort some things out.
It would be foolhardy to say that one team stands clearly above the rest in Class 5A boys, because that wouldn’t be accurate.
Cleveland (17-0) has terrific wins up and down its schedule, most notably against Volcano Vista, Capital and Santa Fe, and the Storm owns three, 1-point wins (VV, Clovis, Centennial).
As the big-school state champion has come out of District 1 for the last four years, we’ll start there. Volcano Vista has some terrific guards and should get sophomore guard Ja’Kwon Hill back eventually after he broke an arm. The Hawks and Cleveland figure to butt heads for the district title.
Two-time defending state champion Atrisco Heritage is the mystery here. The Jaguars have lost four of their last five games and they have not yet found their stride, though that may still come.
District 2 has less confusion, with Eldorado and La Cueva easily the two best from that group.
Much as Las Cruces coach William Benjamin detests whenever I write anything about his program, it should be noted that the starting five for his Bulldawgs are about as solid a group as any in 5A, and they ought to claim District 3 without much drama. District 4 could be a real scrum to the end; Clovis maybe has the slightest of edges there, but there’s no obvious choice.
District 5 is shaping up as a serious duel between Santa Fe and Capital, with respect to the four Albuquerque members of that district. They’ve already split two games this season, and there is much to admire about both.
There will be other stories to follow during the next six weeks, like the plight of Bosque School and Sandia Prep in Class 3A, both of whom hope to win a state title.
But the most compelling boys basketball we’ll see in the metro area could originate from District 6-4A, where all six teams appeared in the latest coaches poll, led by the 1-2-3 trio of Valley, Hope Christian and Highland.
The appearance of Albuquerque Academy at No. 8 is pause to smile as coach Jake Herrin has the 8-3 Chargers positioned to make some noise.
“It’s been a good year; we’re really trying to enjoy it,” said Herrin. “We had a lot of seniors that came back from last year’s team, we’ve got pretty good size, and a lot of our guys put in work this offseason and got a lot better and it’s started to show a little bit.”
Academy — led by forward Brady Forde and guard Ryan Yassin — is actually the No. 1-ranked team by MaxPreps.com, followed by Valley, Highland and Hope.
“It’s a nightmare of a district,” said Herrin. “Every night is gonna feel like a war.”
Herrin’s Chargers already have won more games than they did all of last season (7-20). Herrin is a former longtime assistant to Greg Brown at Volcano Vista and is in his second season as Academy’s head coach.
On the girls side in 5A, there is a clear delineation between three teams (Piedra Vista, Hobbs and Centennial) at the top and their pursuers. Those three are a combined 49-1, the one loss being a Centennial setback to Hobbs.
Despite La Cueva’s 12-game winning streak, you’d still have to label Volcano Vista as the most serious threat from the metro area, if for no other reason than the Hawks beat La Cueva headto-head. Still, the young and feisty Bears are currently playing the best basketball in New Mexico outside of the aforementioned three from outside the area.
West Mesa remains very much in the picture with those shooters. Sandia is certainly a challenger, although the Matadors, like La Cueva, are a young contending group.
There are some excellent secondtier teams as well, like Carlsbad and Mayfield, and teams to keep an eye on, like Cibola and Cleveland.
Class 4A looks to be super competitive, with Los Lunas, ranked No. 1 by the coaches, in a top-tier group with Kirtland Central, Gallup and Silver. Curiously, Bernalillo’s girls (led by standout guard Juliana Aragon) are ranked seventh by the coaches — but the MaxPreps computer poll has the Spartans rated No. 1, with Los Lunas, Kirtland and Gallup next. Should be interesting to see how that plays out, particularly when it comes time to seed teams for the postseason.
MCDONALD’S: Four girls from New Mexico are among the nominees to play in the 2020 McDonald’s All American Games.
La Cueva senior guard Kaya Ingram (signed with Cornell) heads the list. She is joined by two Cibola standouts, guard Isabel Montoya (signed with Pepperdine) and guard Adamari Waddell. Silver’s Katelynn Limardo (a 6-foot-3 guard/ forward) is the fourth nominee.
The final rosters will be revealed on Jan. 23. There will be 24 girls and 24 boys. No New Mexico boys were among the nominees.
The All American Girls Game is April 1 in Houston.
THIS AND THAT: Two local players both reached the 1,000-point career plateau earlier this month: Eldorado junior guard Cece Barela and La Cueva senior guard Derek Aeilts. Barela’s march toward 1,000 has included stops at Robertson, West Mesa and Eldorado. Aeilts hit the mark during the metro tournament last week. … Piedra Vista’s top-ranked and undefeated girls squad is in town this weekend, with stops Friday night at Albuquerque High and Saturday afternoon at Sandia. … One of the interesting notes from the metro event was that tournament officials decided to have an all-female officiating crew (Carissa McGee, Lisa Romero, Rebecca Skoterro) work the La CuevaWest Mesa girls final.
REMINDER: Basketball fans, if you have an idea or tip for my weekly basketball column that you’d like me to consider, hit me up during the season. Call me at 505-823-3950, email me at jyodice@abqjournal.com, or find me on Twitter @JamesDYodice.