Last season’s 64-42 win over Durango means nothing to Ignacio boys basketball head coach Chris Valdez.
The two teams that will meet at 7 p.m. Thursday in Whalen Gymnasium on the campus of Fort Lewis College will be wearing the same uniforms as last year but only resemble their 2013-14 editions if you scrunch your eyes real tight.
Class 4A DHS (3-5) and Class 2A IHS (4-2) lost more than 10 seniors combined from last season’s squads, both of which made the state tournament.
“They are a different team. They are not that team,” Valdez said. “They don’t know what that score was and how big of a defeat it was losing to a smaller school. They could care less.”
What the Demons lost in the size of players like 6-8 Trent Andrews, they gained in shooting and athleticism.
Every player on Durango’s roster stands at least 5-9, and it features seven players over 6-3.
“They’ve got a couple of big guys now that aren’t true big guys, but they’re leapers, and they can shoot the 3,” Valdez said. “That’s much more dangerous.”
In addition to a size advantage, the Bobcats will have to deal with Durango’s depth advantage.
IHS starts five players that saw state tournament action last season, but three out of its four bench players didn’t play varsity last season.
“We’ve got no depth. We’re still working on that,” Valdez said. “It’s gonna be a matchup of the speed of our guards.”
Few teams in 2A boast a better guards than Ignacio’s Wyatt Hayes, Anthony Manzanares and Tucker Ward.
Hayes, a junior, ranks fourth in the state across all classifications with 5.5 steals per game.
All three can play point guard and run the pick and roll with forward Adison Jones and center Nicholas Herrera, the younger brother of FLC senior center Alex Herrera.
“We’re going to have to handle the ball and limit our turnovers. If we don’t turn the basketball over, I think we win the game,” Valdez said. “I don’t think I’ve seen a team that’s never turned the basketball over, though. We’ve got to rebound out of the guard position. We can’t let our big guys fight with their big guys. That’s really it, try to execute offensively and take better shots.”
All of those battles will be taking place inside a collegiate arena with more space than your run of the mill high school gym.
Valdez isn’t worried about IHS adjusting.
The Bobcats played in Whalen last year for the regional championships and regularly practice in the wide-open SunUte Community Center.
It’ll be more about the experience of playing in a local showcase.
“We have ties there. It’s an awesome facility for our area. The fact that we don’t get to use it more often is kind of sad,” Valdez said. “It’s place where (Ignacio) has two (graduates) playing college basketball. I have two kids on my team now that could play there or anywhere in Division II. It’s a space for them to show their talent and not have any pressure to win. I’m taking the pressure away from them. You shouldn’t be beating teams two divisions bigger than you, but we step on the court every time trying to win.”
HHH
While the Bobcats have scored more than 60 points per game this season, scoring has been difficult for the Demons.
DHS has averaged only 41.6 points through eight games.
Long road trips to tournaments have been the story of the Demons’ season, as DHS is yet to play a home game. Though Thursday’s contest won’t come on their home floor, playing at FLC will be a welcome sight for the Demons.
“We’re fired up to play Ignacio again,” DHS head coach Alan Batiste said. “They came into our house last year and played a great game, and we didn’t play up to what we should play to. Ignacio played a big game, and we want that back.”
Though the Demons have six seniors, the group is relatively young when it comes to varsity experience.
Lucas Baken has been a star for the Demons, shooting 45 percent from 3-point land and energizing the team on both ends. But DHS is at its best when it receives well-rounded scoring.
High intensity on the defensive end has led to easy DHS transition baskets. For a team that hasn’t shot the ball well, those fastbreak points have been a blessing.
That’s something Hayes and IHS know a lot about.
heraldsports@durangoherald.com
