A successful, if challenging, season for the Escalante Lobos boys basketball team is over, after a 73-57 first-round loss in the state tournament. And while the team is disappointed with their loss, as was clear after the game and from coach Isaac Royston, they are happy to have had the opportunity to show out through the year.
“Whenever the season was in jeopardy, that’s all we were looking forward to,” said Escalante junior Chris Luna. “We were going to the town park and just playing our butts off over there, trying to get better. And when we heard that the season was a go, it was a big weight off all of our shoulders, and we were just happy to be a part of it.”
The Lobos fell Monday to Pecos High School in the state quarterfinals as a No. 6 seed on the road. The four-time defending state champion Panthers hit 11 3-pointers in the game, and the Lobos ultimately did not have an answer.
“(Coach Royston) pretty much told us that we did all we could, and with the season almost not even being a thing this year, we did everything in our power,” Luna said. “We just went out there and worked as hard as we could and we left it all out on the floor. And there’s not much else you can do besides that.”
“They didn’t miss anything,” Royston said of the Panthers. “We were defending well, but they just didn’t miss. And what are you going to do? When they’re not missing, there’s not a whole lot that you can do.”
The Panthers scored first but a quick burst from junior Santiago Rivas gave the Lobos an early lead. The first quarter was marked by strong shooting from both sides, and Escalante had early success against aggressive defense from Pecos, and they trailed 17-14 after the first quarter.
The second quarter was when the outside shooting started to pick up for Pecos. The quarter started with sloppy passes leading very quickly to a Lobos timeout down seven points after just 32 seconds, and a 10-2 run to open the quarter put the Panthers way ahead. Every time Escalante tried to keep the game close, the Panthers seemed to respond with another 3-pointer. The Lobos had to do all they could just to keep it to an 11-point halftime margin.
But the game got away from Escalante in the third quarter. The Panthers scored 10 points early in the quarter and ended it on an 11-3 run, taking a 23-point lead by the end.
“We just couldn’t get no rhythm in that third quarter, and they just stretched the lead on us,” Royston said. “And then the next thing you know, you’re fighting a battle from the bottom all the way to the top.”
The Pecos coach was comfortable with the lead early in the fourth quarter and checked in the entire bench; but the Lobos did not give up, and when they cut the lead to 14 points with 2:39 remaining the Panthers put the starters back in the game, and held off for a 16-point win in the end.
“(Pecos) would have been tough for everybody in the state to beat tonight,” Royston said. “I told them after the game, a lot of teams would have just packed it up. But they never gave up out here. They gave it their all until the last second.”
Rivas scored 23 to lead the Panthers and was instrumental in keeping the game to a respectable margin. Senior Isaiah Maestas scored 11. Luna had an uncharacteristically quiet night with just three points on a first-quarter make, well below his regular season average of 11 points.
Pecos captains Jodaiah Padilla and Rolando Sandoval combined for 42 points, and both were hitting shots all night long.
Royston said he wants to build a program similar to Pecos, where they have a winning tradition and are feared by opponents based only on name recognition after multiple state titles.
“I hope we made the North proud,” he said. “Next year, I think we’re going to be really, really good.”
But the Lobos will return much of the team’s core, including juniors Rivas and Luna.
“All the underclassmen, we’re just looking to push towards a state championship,” Luna said. “That’s something that all of us have really been looking forward to since sixth grade.”
“There’s a lot of bright stuff for the future for Escalante basketball,” Royston said. “I can guarantee you that starting tomorrow, they’ll be like, ‘Coach, is the weight room open?’”