Belen Eagles
The Belen boys basketball team captured the Stu Clark Tournament last week in Las Vegas.
The Eagles defeated Bernalillo in the opening round of the tournament thanks to guard Jordi Rojo’s three-point basket with two seconds left for a 48-45 win.
In the semifinal matchup with West Las Vegas, the Eagles put together a dominate fourth quarter, outscoring the Dons 24-11 in the final frame, winning 79-61 to reach the championship game against Taos.
In the contest against the Tigers of Taos, the Eagles kept the Tigers at arm’s reach for most of the contest, once leading by 17 in the fourth quarter.
Taos would make a run late in the contest to get within four, but the Eagles were able to make their free-throws late to hold on for a 57-51 win in the championship.
Daniel Corrales led the way for the Eagles against Taos with 25 points. Brody Jaquez poured in 17 points in the victory.
“The team really feels like they are starting to gel together,” head coach Donald Marquez said after the tournament. “Those are three big wins for us.”
Belen is now 9-4 on the season and will take on Albuquerque Academy this week.
The Belen girls basketball team was in action in the Goddard Tournament over the winter break.
The Lady Eagles came in 8th-place during the tournament.
The Lady Eagles opened the tournament with a 54-48 loss to Bloomfield.
Things did not get better for the Lady Eagles for the rest of the tournament either, as they lost 44-18 to Albuquerque Academy and then were beaten 50-29 by Lovington in the 7th-place contest.
The Lady Eagles sit at 1-11 on the season and will have a busy week as they look to bounce back from the rough go.
Belen has two games on their schedule this week. First up is a road game against Thoreau. The Lady Eagles end their week with a home game against Organ Mountain.
Los Lunas Tigers
The Los Lunas boys team was in Clovis for the Clovis Tournament over the winter break.
The Tigers scored a fifth-place finish in the tournament.
After losing their opening contest of the tournament, 48-19 against Atrisco Heritage, the Tigers grabbed a 47-44 win over host Clovis to advance to the fifth-place game against Alamogordo.
The Tigers were able to dispose of the Alamogordo Tigers with ease in that contest, winning 57-34.
Ezra Guest and Jalin Holland were both named to the All-Tournament Team following the championship game.
The Tigers are now 6-6 on the season and will have a busy week coming up.
First, the Tigers will square off with Organ Mountain and then pay a visit to Carlsbad.
The Lady Tigers were also in Clovis for a tournament over the winter break.
Los Lunas finished in 8th-place in that tournament.
After losing their opening game of the tournament to Atrisco Heritage, by a final of 33-15, the Lady Tigers then lost to Taos, 37-30.
In the 7th-place game against Alamogordo, the Lady Tigers lost by a final of 41-19.
Tayden Hanks had 10 points in the contest against Taos, while Sadie Ortega had eight points against Alamogordo.
Los Lunas has yet to break into the win column this season at 0-10, but will get two shots this week to change that narrative.
First up is a road game against Piedra Vista before a home game later in the week against Espanola Valley.
Valencia Jaguars
The Valencia girls basketball team was in Las Cruces for the Holiday Hoopla Tournament at Centennial High School over the winter break.
The Lady Jaguars came home with a 4th-place finish in the tournament.
Valencia opened with a 38-36 win over Artesia to open the tournament up.
In that contest, Azalia Malizia scored 10 points on 4-of-13 shooting for the Lady Jaguars.
In their next contest, the Lady Jaguars fell 40-34 to host Centennial.
Jadyn Montoya, Elena Lucero and Malizia all had nine points each. Montoya added five rebounds in the loss as well.
In the third-place game against Las Cruces, the Lady Jaguars could not overcome a rough first quarter, falling behind 20-2, and ending up falling 58-31.
In that game Zoe Brown scored 10 points and grabbed five rebounds of the Lady Jaguars.
Valencia is now 6-6 on the season and will be in action just once this week, a road game against Bloomfield.
The Valencia boys team also participated in the Holiday Hoopla in Las Cruces.
The Jags came home with an 8th-place finish in the tournament.
Following a 72-36 loss to the top team in the state in Las Cruces, the Jaguars suffered heart-breaking losses to Deming, 49-48, and Santa Teresa, 63-60.
Adam Evarts is a graduate of the University of New Mexico where he studied journalism and history. He has lived in Valencia County most of his life. Adam covers sports for the Valencia County News-Bulletin, including prep competitions for the three local high schools, Senior Olympics, rodeo, Little League and more.
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April 19, 2024
