Boys basketball winter break results roundup

There was plenty going on with the county’s boys basketball games over the holidays as well.

Here is a quick look at how all three fared, as well as what is upcoming for each in the final weeks before district play tips off.

Los Lunas

The Los Lunas boys kicked off winter break by taking on Gallup at home and secured a 63-55 win to rebound from a loss to Santa Fe a few days earlier.

On December 21, the Tigers tacked on another win with a 54-27 win over Bloomfield.

The good fortunes would continue in Alamogordo at the Kiwanis Holiday Tournament, as LLHS claimed wins over Cathedral (Texas), 51-31 and Valencia 55-36 to set up championship matchup with the hosts.

Bryce Santana would pour in 25 points for LLHS but it wasn’t enough as AHS took the tournament crown with a 59-50 victory.

Santana, Josiah Navarro and Jacob Sanchez were named to the all-tournament team for their efforts.

After the new year, the Tigers hosted a pair of Las Cruces schools as the flagship Bulldawgs and Mayfield both came to town in games that served as a sneak peek of future opponents once LLHS moves to Class 5A next year.

Unfortunately for the Tigers, they were unable to come out with a victory in either game, falling 59-51 to LCHS and 48-45 to Mayfield on a last second shot.

The Tigers traveled to Bernalillo on Tuesday, coming up with an important 48-47 win over the No. 6 ranked team in 4A. Santana was big again for LLHS, scoring 16 points to lead the team in scoring. The win moves Los Lunas to 8-6 on the year.

The Tigers return home at 4 p.m. on Saturday to face Gadsden. GHS sits at 6-6 on the year after falling to Las Cruces High on Tuesday.

The Tigers are the seventh best team in Class 4A according to MaxPreps.

Belen

The Eagles had the lightest schedule over the holidays, but kicked off the break at the Grants Tournament, where they went 1-2. It opened with a blowout loss to Capital, 61-27, putting BHS in the consolation bracket.

On day two, the team was able to come out victorious against Farmington with a 41-39 victory.

The win set up a matchup with Kirtland Central on the third and final day, which the Broncos took easily, 54-31. BHS came home with a 4-7 record heading into the break.

A return to action came on Dec. 27 as the team traveled to Silver, where it was able to secure a 46-34 win.

Belen led the game the whole way and were able to keep the hosts at arms length and close out the year with a win.

Last Friday, the Eagles hosted Albuquerque Academy in the first game of the new year and fell 64-31. The next day, the Eagles got back on track with a 68-51 win over Los Alamos.

BHS played at Espanola Valley on Tuesday and fell by 11 points, 70-59, dropping the Eagles to 6-9 on the year.

BHS will host Hobbs at 7 p.m. tomorrow night. Hobbs comes into the contest with a 10-6 record.

Currently, BHS is ranked 19th in Class 4A by MaxPreps

Valencia 

The Jaguars kicked off the break with a win over Goddard at VHS, 78-63.

Preston Lowery led VHS with 17 points in the win. The Jaguars also traveled to Alamogordo for the holiday tournament and started it off with a win over Maryvale (Arizona) 63-59 before falling to Los Lunas on day two.

 

VHS was able to finish on a high note, beating Kirtland Central 77-64 in the consolation bracket on the final day.

In the first game of the decade, the Jags fell to Bernalillo at home, 57-46.

On Tuesday, VHS took on Bloomfield in a game that saw the Jaguars emerge victorious with a comfortable win.

VHS led by double digits for much of the contest and nearly all of the second half.

The Bobcats did their best to remain within striking range, never allowing the lead to grow to 20 points or more, but they also failed to ever truly threaten the Jaguars lead.

The Jaguars will look to build on the win on Tuesday in Santa Fe as they take on Capital.

CHS is 11-2 on the year and defeated Los Alamos 74-53 on Tuesday.

With the win, VHS improved to 9-7 on the season as well as bouncing back from Friday’s loss to Bernalillo.

The Jaguars are currently ranked 14th in class 4A by MaxPreps.