McCurdy junior Jeremaya Roybal has the size and athleticism to dominate the post. The key is confidence.
“We had to come out confident in this game,” Roybal said. “Last game, I played a decent game. But this game, I knew I had to step my game up.”
He showed off his ability from start to finish in a big district win. The McCurdy Bobcats (12-8, 3-1 in district) blew past Mora (9-9, 2-2) 66-44 at home on Feb. 1.
“I told them to play with no fear tonight,” McCurdy coach Ernesto Espinoza said.
The Bobcats started quickly, going up 17-8 after the first quarter and leading by 12 at halftime. Their win, ultimately by 22 points, was hardly ever in much doubt after the first quarter.
Roybal led the Bobcats throughout the game with big rebounds and plenty of putback points, finishing with 17 points and 14 rebounds. He said that warmups play a big role in building that confidence, and getting shots to fall early helps throughout the game.
“He cleaned up everything on the boards on both sides, offense and defense,” Espinoza said. “He plays with more and more confidence. Every game he gets a little bit more.”
Four Bobcats all hit double figures — in addition to Roybal’s 17, Judah Duran scored 16, Lucas Martinez 15 and Ryan Montoya 14.
Impressively, the Bobcats limited Mora’s top player in Lincoln Alcon to just two points, a pair of second-quarter free throws. Jacob Samaniego focused on slowing him down.
“He was the main focus,” Roybal said of Alcon. “Without him contributing to the offense, they were going to start nothing.”
McCurdy has a tough week ahead with a chance to take over the district. They start at Escalante (12-7, 3-1) on Thursday, after losing to the Lobos in a tight high-scoring contest at the Northern Rio Grande Tournament.
Then, they have a grudge match at Mesa Vista (15-4, 4-0) on Saturday. McCurdy won by two at the NRG Tournament, but Mesa Vista has not lost since then, and more recently won at McCurdy by 20.
“It’s a tough district, you just never know,” Espinoza said.
Freshmen Leading Lady Bobcats
As McCurdy’s girls team (6-10, 1-3) continues its best season in several years, the youth of the team has come into clear focus.
Behind young players, the Lady Bobcats defeated Mora (5-11, 0-4) 27-22 at home on Feb. 1.
“They had to dig down,” McCurdy coach Joseph Brooks said. “They stayed composed. Composure is a really good thing. And we’re starting to have people come out and be leaders on the floor.”
The team now has just one senior in Andrea Croff. Meanwhile, the five starters from their Mora game include one junior, a sophomore and three freshmen. Two other freshmen were the first players off the bench.
Those five freshmen combined for 15 of McCurdy’s 27 points in the game. Amy Anaya, on of those freshmen, led the team with eight points in the game, and has already become a team leader on and off the court.
“A lot of energy,” Brooks said of the freshmen. “I’m really proud of how they’re playing. They’re gaining the experience, and they’re also gaining the confidence that we need them to have.”
Eighth-grader Alyanna Chavez was also just called up to the varsity team after the end of the middle-school season, and while she did not play against Mora, she could make an immediate impact on the team.
McCurdy led 11-3 early over Mora, and was up by eight points in the third quarter. Mora came back, but a big shot by Kaylee Martinez kept them ahead late.
McCurdy is looking for another district win at Escalante (6-14, 1-3) on the road on Thursdsay.