The Mesa Vista High School boys basketball team makes come-backs look easy.
The Trojans were down by a fairly significant margin since the middle of the second quarter, Jan. 12, against McCurdy Charter School, at home.
The Bobcats led by 10 points or more for most of the game, but some well-executed play from Mesa Vista at the end of the fourth quarter brought that 10-point cushion crashing down.
Damian Trujillo first scored off of a fast-break, then, on the very next play, he stole the ball for a layup. His four points brought the Trojans within six points of the Bobcats.
Augustine Campos, following the play, stole the ball from McCurdy and passed to Xavier Varela for a layup. The Trojans had a minute left to tie the game with four points.
The strong play in the final stretch of the game was not enough to hand Mesa Vista a win, though, and McCurdy closed the game, with a 66-60 victory. McCurdy’s Raul Arroyo had the final point of the game, scoring off of a fast-break layup.
“The kids didn’t stop fighting, and that’s what (assistant) coach (Paul) Herrera and I try to teach them,” Mesa Vista head coach Benito Maestas said.
McCurdy head coach Ernesto Espinoza credited the slip at the end to some mental lapses, as the Trojans did not do anything for which the Bobcats were unprepared.
“They lined up in that 1-2-2 half court press that they give us,” he said. “I think my point guards, both of them, turned it over twice. Our guys started going down the court instead of staying up, where we wanted them.”
The two teams had already played once before this season, Dec. 21, at McCurdy. That game was similarly tight, with McCurdy squeaking out a three-point win, 68-65.
In that game, the Bobcats were without their leading scorer and front man, Ubaldo Barela.
He scored 14 points in this game and was a big presence down low, until he fouled out in the fourth quarter.
McCurdy, having played against a full Mesa Vista team, had a game plan in place to shut down the Trojan offense.
“We know everything runs through Xavier (Varela),” Espinoza said. “He’s a big part of their offense. We were trying to take him out of it and make somebody else beat us.”
The Bobcats were unable to fully stop Varela’s dynamic offensive abilities. He finished the game with 23 points, despite their careful guarding of him.
“Every time I got the ball, they would double team me and try to make it hard for me,” Varela said.
Maestas, who is accustomed to teams attempting to take Varela out of a game, said he had plays set to give the ball to other players.
“Unfortunately, the shots didn’t fall,” he said.
He also said the team’s 14 missed free throws were a major factor in the loss.
The flu season has taken a toll on a number of teams throughout the area and Mesa Vista was still feeling the effects of it. Senior Brian Gollas saw sparse minutes in the game, as he was under the weather.
The Bobcats had their own struggle with the flu, two weeks ago.
These two teams are done playing each other this season, as McCurdy will look to dominate its division 3A district, starting Jan. 31, at Dulce High School.
Mesa Vista will try to do the same in its 2A district, beginning with a Jan. 20 match-up with Escalante High School.