BAYFIELD – The Bayfield High School boys basketball team has been tested well this season, and a Friday night matchup with Pine River rival Ignacio was as stern of a test as they’ve had.
Ignacio jumped out to a big lead early and held an 11-point advantage, but the Wolverines clawed their way back to pick up a 70-64 victory in the Southwest Classic at BHS.
“We didn’t expect them to be near as good as they were,” Bayfield senior Ryan Phelps said. “We knew they were good, but not that good. They came out on fire right away, and give credit to Kai (Roubideaux), he didn’t miss. But once we got things going, it was fine.”
Ignacio could do little wrong in the first quarter. The Bobcats’ 2-3 zone kept Bayfield’s offense in check, while their offense found open players for rhythm jump shots that they knocked down with regularity to help them to a 21-9 lead entering the second quarter.
Bayfield’s offense figured things out in the second quarter and scored 20 points behind an 11-point quarter from Phelps. But the Bobcats’ offense never slowed down, as they took a 40-29 lead into the break after hitting seven 3-pointers in the half.
Three Bobcats – Cole McCaw, Kai Roubideaux and Johnny Valdez – accounted for all 40 of Ignacio’s points in the first half.
“In a big game like this, those three seniors playing Bayfield for the last time, they came out and put on a performance they can be proud of,” Bobcats head coach Chris Valdez said.
“We got into a little foul trouble that cost us the game. We’re not deep and we’re working on that. We had to play some freshmen in the first half and third quarter and were still able to stay in the game, and that’s a testament to those seniors who have worked their tails off for us.”
Coming out for the third quarter, Bayfield’s Hayden Farmer took the game over and went on a 7-0 run himself to get the Wolverines back in the game.
The Wolverines kept chipping away at the deficit and took a brief lead at 48-47 in the final minute of the third quarter. But Ignacio regained the lead and was up 49-48 heading to the fourth.
Bayfield took the lead in the fourth, and Ignacio stayed close and trailed 65-62 in the final minute, but when the Bobcats had to foul to extend the game, the Wolverines drained their free throws to secure the win. The Wolverines made 11-of-14 free throws in the fourth.
Phelps led Bayfield with 21 points. Keyon Prior added 18 and Farmer finished with 17.
Roubideaux finished the night with 22 points. He missed a good chunk of time with foul trouble, but when he was on the court, Bayfield’s Hayden Farmer shut the senior Bobcat down.
“We switch me and him because I’m our help guy,” said Phelps, who guarded Roubideaux in the first half before Farmer took over the responsibility. “We switched me and Hayden so I could stay in the paint and wouldn’t have to go out on Kai, and it worked out.”
Valdez had 21 and McCaw added 16 for Igancio.
Ignacio will face Montezuma-Cortez at 3 p.m. Saturday, and Bayfield will meet Durango in the final game of the weekend at 5 p.m. Both games will be played at BHS.
kschneider@durangoherald.com
