Now that the regular season is over in high school basketball, the good news is that six local teams are already assured of state tournament berths.
The Pojoaque girls team finished the regular season undefeated (10-0) in District 2AAA and remain undefeated (26-0) on the season. St. Michaels (7-3) finished second and West Las Vegas (5-5) was third. Santa Fe Indian School (4-6) took fourth, while Robertson (4-6) took fifth and Raton (0-10) was sixth.
Pojoaque is seeking to repeat as Class AAA state champions. The Elkettes host the District 2AAA championship Saturday
The Española Valley boys basketball team wrapped up first place in District 2AAAA by finishing 7-1 in district play. In second place is Los Alamos at 6-2, followed by Bernalillo (4-4), Capital (3-5) and Taos (0-8). The Sundevils will host the District 2AAAA championship game Friday.
The Española girls also clinched first place in District 2AAAA with a 7-1 record. Los Alamos was second at 6-2 in district play, while Capital (4-4) finished third. Taos (3-5) took fourth and Bernalillo (0-8) finished fifth. The Lady Sundevils host the District 2AAAA championship Saturday.
The McCurdy Lady Bobcats finally overcame the Peñasco Lady Panthers, who had defeated the Bobcats in 11 straight games prior to this season and won the last three District 3AA championships. McCurdy beat Peñasco twice during the District 3AA season en route to a 6-0 district record. Peñasco (3-3) finished second, Mesa Vista (3-3) was third and Questa (0-6) was fourth. The Bobcats will host the District 3AA championship Friday.
The Mesa Vista boys basketball team dropped its final District 3AA game against Peñasco (see related story) and finished tied with Peñasco for first place with a 5-1 record. The Trojans earned the top seed by virtue of point differential, having defeated the Panthers 64-39 in Ojo Caliente, while losing by just five points 81-76 Feb. 20 at Peñasco. Peñasco finished second, while Questa (2-4) was third and McCurdy (0-6) finished fourth. Mesa Vista hosts the District 3AA championship Saturday.
The biggest surprise of the season in District 2AA was the emergence of the Coronado boys atop the district standings. Although the Leopards faltered in their final district game of the season, losing to Navajo Prep 58-57 Feb. 21 in Farmington, the Leopards still finished first with a 5-1 record in District 2AA. Escalante took second with a 4-2 record. Dulce, the three-time District 2AA champion, was just 2-4 this year and finished third, while Navajo Prep (1-5) took fourth. Coronado hosts the District 2AA championship Saturday.
Among the other local teams, only Pojoaque has likely secured a spot in the postseason. The Elks finished second in District 2AAA with an 8-2 record, with both of their losses coming to St. Michaels, who finished first at 10-0 in District 2AAA. Santa Fe Indian School (5-5) was third, while West Las Vegas (4-6) was fourth. Robertson (3-7) and Raton (0-10) were fifth and sixth, respectively. Pojoaque will host a District 2AAA semifinal game Wednesday (2/25) in Pojoaque.
In Classes AAA and AAAA, only the winner of the regular season district title and the winner of the postseason district tournament are guaranteed a spot in the opening round of the state tournament. If that happens to end up being the same team, then only that team from that district will have a secured spot in the state tournament field.
There will be 16 teams each in the Class AAA and AAAA state tournaments. Those without secured spots will be selected by committee. Pojoaque, with a 17-9 record overall, is a shoo-in for a spot in the opening round of state, since only 12 of the 26 teams in Class AAA have winning records on the season.
It will be tougher for Class AA schools to qualify for the state tournament. With eight Class AA districts across the state, only the district champion and the district runner-up in the district tournament will advance to the opening round of state.
The Coronado girls team, which finished second in District 2AA with a 4-2 record, will have to win its semifinal game Wednesday (2/25) at Coronado. They will play the winner of Tuesday’s quarterfinal game between third-place Escalante (2-4) and fourth-place Dulce (0-6) at Escalante. Navajo Prep, 6-0 in District 2AA, will host the championship game Friday in Farmington.