EL PASO COUNTY – For being a team that won just five regular-season games, the Ignacio Bobcats certainly didn’t play the part in the playoffs. IHS entered the Class 3A-Region VII Tournament’s championship basketball game Saturday having grabbed three of their most recent four.
One of those wins was a heart-stopping 45-42 upset of event-hosting Peyton – once Panther senior Logan Nickell’s attempted three-pointer finally rimmed out at the buzzer after it appeared to be forcing overtime – the previous evening.
“They won a game they’re not supposed to win – over the No. 7 team – to advance to the Sweet 16,” IHS head coach Chris Valdez said. “Last year, we got beat out in the Round-of-32 in 2A, so we made it one round further … beat the home seed on their floor with a big crowd. I was proud of the kids.”
“You know, this season’s been up and down,” Valdez said. “Going back into 3A, where the competition’s so much better – we had four top teams in our league, and two of them were 4A – it really helped us prepare for this.”
Seeded No. 26 in the Class 3A State Tournament’s Round-of-32, the ’Cats faced No. 23 The Pinnacle at Peyton’s Clowers Court in the regional final. The Federal Heights-based Timberwolves stunned 10-seed Colorado Springs The Vanguard School 53-45 in the other semifinal.
Led by senior guard Eppie Quintana, Ignacio looked primed early to pull off another shocker. Responding quickly to Pinnacle senior guard Robert McClinton’s first three-pointer, Quintana sank his second trey to regain the designated guests an 8-7 advantage. After Bobcat freshman Ambrose Valdez knocked down a near-trey retying the score at 10-10, however, the ’Wolves got five straight McClinton points – a triple, plus a breakaway layup off a steal. Quintana booked a basket shortly before time expired in the first to keep IHS close at 15-12.
Unfortunately the ’Cats would get no closer.
Outscored 11-2 during the first 5:32 of the second stanza, Ignacio fell behind 26-14 before Valdez called a timeout. For a moment, the pause seemed to serve the Bobcats well; junior center/forward Gabe Cox maneuvered inside for two points and junior guard Devante Montoya followed with a trey that cut The Pinnacle’s lead to 26-19. Fouled by Ambrose Valdez with 1.4 left, junior forward Jacob Madrid answered by making one of two free throws, and the Timberwolves went to their locker room up eight.
Averaging more than 30 points per game, McClinton began the third quarter with a baseline jumper. After IHS crept back within 10 points, 33-24, via three Quintana free throws in four tries, McClinton got fouled on a three-point attempt in the final second and closed out the quarter by sinking two of three FTs.
Down 41-26 beginning the final frame, the Bobcats attempted one last push but found themselves losing even more ground. McClinton went 7-of-8 from the charity stripe during the deciding eight minutes and totaled a game-high 31 points as The Pinnacle prevailed 56-36.
“We had an unfortunate injury … had a key player come out, and it was next-man-up for us,” said Timberwolves head coach Ron Guerrero, alluding to senior reserve Philip Pham hurting his lower left leg in the first quarter. “It’s a team effort, from our starting five all the way down to our 14th man. I’m just so proud of the guys.”
Madrid (three points) and senior center Noah Estes (six) combined to offset Ignacio’s low-post duo of Cox (six) and senior forward/center Dylan McCaw (two), plus sophomore alternate Charlie Pargin (zero).
“(Cox) was definitely a factor on the floor,” Guerrero said. “We got to watch some film on him and wanted to front him, double-team him so we can limit his touches in the paint.”
Seniors Izaiah Parsons and Daunte Dominguez scored six points apiece for the ’Wolves (16-8 overall), while sophomore Nehemiah Arellano and freshman Caleb Arellano each chipped in two.
Quintana totaled 14 points in his final game for the Bobcats (8-16). Montoya matched Quintana’s two threes and registered 10 points. Valdez finished with four. Junior guard Phillip Quintana was held scoreless and fouled out with 3:36 left in the contest.
“We need to start games better, and that’s going to be a big part of the plan next year – not coming from behind,” Chris Valdez said. “I didn’t kid myself thinking we could stop (McClinton), but in a zone we could hold him to a few shots and we just didn’t step out. We gave them … wide-open shots, and were on our heels the rest of the game.”
Advancing to the 2023 CHSAA Class 3A State Championships’ Great Eight, the Timberwolves will next face No.2 seed Salida (23-1) on Thursday at the University of Denver.
In the victory over the hosting Panthers, Cox led the ’Cats with 16 points, eight coming during a tightly contested fourth quarter. Montoya made two threes and tallied 10 points, while Phillip Quintana sank three treys and logged nine. Eppie Quintana scored five points, Valdez made a three and McCaw chipped in two points.
Junior forward/center Ayden Breese scored 13 first-quarter points for Peyton (13-9 overall) and ended with a game-high 24, but PHS couldn’t hold an early 16-4 lead. IHS cut the margin to 16-8 heading into the second, eventually went into halftime down 24-23 and later closed out the third quarter having pulled even at 34.
