The Ignacio High School boys basketball team got after it from the opening whistle in Tuesday night’s 2A/1A San Juan Basin League opener, as the Bobcats beat Dolores 49-22 in Dolores.
The Bobcats (3-0, 1-0 SJBL), ranked No. 4 in Class 2A, opened the game on a 20-0 run and never trailed in the victory. The Bobcats led 14-0 after the first quarter and kept the Bears (1-1, 0-1 SJBL) off of the scoreboard until midway through the second quarter. They outscored the Bears 23-18 in the second half.
IHS was led by Tristan Thompson and Brady McCaw, who both finished with 12 points, while Ocean Hunter had 10. Dylan Labarth finished with seven. The Bears were led by Keagan Ertel-Moralez, who finished with 12 points.
Ignacio will have 11 days off before the Bobcats will travel to Cedaredge (1-2) on Dec. 21 at 7 p.m.
Girls Basketball
Girls BasketballThe Ignacio High School girls basketball team got the conference portion of its schedule off to an emphatic start, after the Bobcats cruised to a 43-9 win over Dolores Tuesday night at Dolores High School.
The Bobcats (2-1, 1-0 SJBL), ranked No. 10 in the CHSAA Class 2A poll, dominated in their first 2A/1A San Juan Basin League matchup, as they led 13-2 after one quarter, and 23-5 at halftime. In the second half, IHS held the Bears (1-3) to just four points and coasted to a win. Charlize Valdez led IHS with nine points, while Makayla Howell had eight.
“I expected to win and we did,” said IHS head coach Justa Whitt. “We focused on being disciplined to run our game the way we need to. I think we played down quite a bit, and we missed a ton of layups. The score probably should have been near 70.”
Ignacio tips off against Kirtland Central (2-2), No. 2 in the NMAA 4A poll, at 7 p.m. Friday at Ignacio High School.
Durango High School girls fought hard, but the potential game-winning shot came up just short Tuesday night against Farmington High, as the Demons fell 39-37.
Durango (2-2) was led by Kyle Rowland with 12 points, while Maddy McManus grabbed a team-high 11 rebounds.
“It was a back and forth game all night with two defensive teams really going at it,” said DHS head coach Tim Fitzpatrick. “There were a lot of turnovers from both sides, and it was that kind of game. We had a chance to win it at the end. We grabbed the rebound and we didn’t get a good look off. I’m still extremely proud of the girls, and they showed a lot of toughness.”
DHS outscored the Scorpions (2-0) 10-5 in the fourth quarter but could not pull out the win. The Demons will have one day to prepare for a tough 24th annual Pueblo County Girls Holiday Basketball Tournament, where they will face two of the top three teams in Class 4A. Durango opens the tournament against No. 2 Pueblo West (2-0) at 6:30 p.m. Thursday, before facing Palmer on Friday and No. 3 Air Academy (1-0) on Saturday.
bploen@durangoherald.com
