Hoping to follow last Friday's nerve-wracking 38-37 San Juan Basin League win at Ridgway with something a little more authoritative Tuesday night back inside IHS Gymnasium...the Bobcat boys may have missed the mark on that.
But just like up in Ouray County, they again found a way to win.
Senior guard Wyatt Hayes, scoring a layup with four seconds left, had been the hero against the Demons. Backcourt-mate Anthony Manzanares played the role versus the Monticello Buckaroos of Utah. Scoring 13 of his game-high 17 after halftime, the senior guard helped Ignacio overcome deficits of 19-16 at intermission and 34-29 through three quarters to win the battle 49-45.
He scored nine points in the fourth alone, hitting four freethrows in six tries.
With two three-pointers in the frame to aid the rally, Hayes finished with 10 points (as he did at RHS). Senior center Nick Herrera scored seven of his nine in the second half as well, and finished with only two personal fouls compared to senior counterpart Matt Freestone's four (he finished with only six points).
IHS senior guard/forward Tucker Ward scored eight, but finished with three personal fouls and a technical. Guard Johnny Valdez scored three points and senior forward Austin McCaw finished with two.
MHS, meanwhile, got 10 points from senior Eli Johnson, nine from senior Nolan Freestone, eight from senior Andrew Torres, seven from senior Austin Hart and five from senior Tyler Bird.
Bumped up from seventh to sixth in the Feb. 15 CHSAANow.com Class 2A poll, Ignacio rose to 15-2 overall and remained 9-0 in the SJBL. Monticello slipped to 15-3 while staying 6-0 in UHSAA Region 19.
Up next for the 'Cats will be tomorrow's regular-season finale at home versus Telluride, with results from tonight's road test at Norwood unavailable at press time. The underrated Class 1A Mavericks entered the SJBL clash standing 11-7 overall and hungry to build upon a quality 61-57 loss Tuesday night at 1A #6 Ouray (15-2).
