The first game for Mesa Vista girls basketball was a shock. They faced a club team from Utah that included posts at 6 feet 4 inches, and 6 feet 2 inches tall.
That game ended as a more-than-20-point loss, but overall the weekend was a success. They were the only high school team in a mostly AAU field at the Jam On It Grand Finale Tournament in Las Vegas, Nev. July 22-24.
“It was a good experience,” said team coach Jesse Boies. “It was a good time to get a lot of these girls out of Ojo Caliente.”
The Lady Trojans team ultimately took fourth place in the tournament’s silver division.
When they first walked into the Las Vegas Convention Center, they were taken aback seeing about 60 courts set up all throughout.
Overall, the 12 players played five games in the tournament (or four and a half — one game ended at halftime when fans from the other team harassed the referees, who then stopped the game), facing teams from Utah, Montana and California. Mesa Vista had to play without last year’s leading scorer Tana Lopez. Meaning, the rest of the team had to learn how to play the role of the aggressive-minded point getter.
They also enjoyed a night on the town, visiting Circus Circus for games and roller coasters and then a team dinner.
“Had a good time, forgot about basketball,” Boies said. “Just went in and enjoyed the atmosphere and the moment.”