Six games into the season, the Ignacio High School basketball team finally is hosting its home opener.
The Bobcats didn’t schedule a cupcake, either.
Defending Class 3A state champion Pagosa Springs will visit at 6:30 p.m. Friday at IHS.
“They’re a team that’s become over the past six or seven years our rival,” IHS head coach Chris Valdez said. “It’s always a competitive team.”
The Pirates are 2-2 so far this season, winning their last two games against Salida and Peak to Peak after dropping road games at Class 2A No. 1 Sanford and Buena Vista.
IHS lost its first game of the season last year 53-50 at Pagosa Springs and hopes to change the pattern this year.
“We approach it that we can beat anybody if we’re prepared properly, we play our hardest, and we make the fewest mistakes,” Valdez said. “They don’t change a lot of things. We try to take them off their patterns and capitalize on their mistakes.”
Keaton Smyth leads the Pirates with 11.8 points and 2.8 assists per game. Briar Erskine grabs 6.5 rebounds per game.
Pagosa averages 47 points per game compared to IHS’ 55.7 and allow 44.8 points against IHS’ 41.7.
“They have a great transition; that’s the one thing we try to counter,” Valdez said of the Pirates’ offense. “When it works right, it throws them out of their offensive swing. You could throw my five guys out there and not call a play, and they’ll create.”
Clayton Jefferson leads the Bobcats with 13.2 points per game, while Adison Jones scores 11.5 per contest.
Wyatt Hayes runs the point with 3.5 assists per game and also chips in 9.7 points per game.
The Bobcats are ranked No. 5 in the chsaanow.com poll, receiving one first place vote.
IHS only is playing six home games this year, so Valdez expects a solid crowd.
“This is something Ignacio does,” he said. “They support their basketball.”
IHS girls basketball
The IHS girls basketball team hasn’t weathered its season-opening road stretch as well.
It’ll face its toughest test of the season in chsaanow.com Class 3A No. 2 Pagosa Springs at 5 p.m. Friday at IHS.
The Bobcats are 1-4, sandwiching a 41-23 win over Montezuma-Cortez High School on Dec. 7 between two separate two-game losing streaks.
They’ve allowed 37.4 points per game and scored 30.8.
No IHS player currently is averaging double figures, but Gabriela Garcia leads the team at 6.8 points per game.
Its not the start the Bobcats wanted after advancing to the last eight of last season’s state tournament.
Pagosa finished in fifth place at state last year and is currently 4-0, outscoring its opponents by 37.8 points per game.
The Pirates haven’t allowed more than 27 points in a game so far this season.
IHS head coach Shane Seibel was unable to be reached for comment.
kgrabowski@durangoherald.com
