Española Valley High School head basketball coach James Branch said his team has been a bit on the down side coming into their trip to Rio Rancho High School’s Jalene Berger Allstate Holiday Hoops Classic — but the return of team captain Ryan Trujillo and a stifling defensive effort may have turned the tide in the upward direction moving forward.
The Sundevils (7-6) won two games in what was a shortened tournament for the team due to mother nature’s snow storm the night of Dec. 27. The school’s administration feared safe travel returning home from Rio Rancho, so Española was forced to forfeit their first round match up against Deming High School.
Unable to test their wits against six-time state champion Hope Christian School in the semifinals, the Sundevils settled for the consolation championship after securing two victories Dec. 29, starting with a 91-35 rout over Arizona’s Ganado High School, which was followed with a 71-57 win over Texas’ Socorro High School.
Trujillo had missed about two and a half weeks of action after surgery for appendicitis and he didn’t hesitate to get involved early in his return. The senior scored a game-high 22 points against Ganado, which included a first half outburst of 19.
“I was just excited to come back,” Trujillo said. “I took it slow (in returning) and it was just hard watching on the bench. I was anxious and just wanted to be out there, but I helped those guys out as much as I could when I was on the bench.”
Back on the floor, Trujillo helped lead the charge on defense against the Hornets, scooping up two steals to score four of the team’s first six points. He scored 13 of his 19 first half points in the first quarter.
“It felt good to start fast,” Trujillo said. “It all started with our defense. We came out hustling and the defense helped me create all my shots and opportunities. We know our offense is gonna come, so we’ve been focusing on defense in practice and defensive drills.”
Española’s defense held Ganado to four points in the first quarter and they built their lead to 47-9 at the intermission.
The Sundevils would go on to outscore Ganado 48-22 in the second half and Jon Garcia provided energy off the bench as he scored all his seven points in the fourth quarter. Brian Martinez scored 17 points, Luis Molina had 14 and freshman Garret May added nine.
“It was good period just to play and get a win,” Branch said. “We’ve been on the downside here now for a while, so our goal was to come here and win two games.”
Socorro provided a tougher task in the consolation championship later in the day, and despite building a 10-point lead at 17-7 with 2:13 remaining in the first quarter after a Martinez 3-pointer, the Bulldogs started hot in the second, inching within 26-21.
Española used their defense to their advantage again and came back with an 11-0 run to separate to a 16-point lead at 37-21.
Trujillo knocked down a pair of jump shots in the run, including a 3-pointer and also converted on a three-point play at the basket after a steal. Gabe Serrano added a steal and three-point play finished off at the free throw line himself.
Socorro ended the half on a 9-4 run to make the score 42-31 at halftime, but Española stayed the course in the second half and outscored the Bulldogs 17-13 in the fourth quarter after leading 55-44 after three.
Trujillo again led Española in the scoring column, pouring in a game-high 33 points. Martinez scored 13, Gabe Serrano had 10 and Garcia added nine.
Enjoying large leads late in both contests, Branch was forced to call timeouts in effort to encourage his team to keep playing defense and secure possession of the ball.
“I gotta have guys that can go in and play good defense and take care of the ball all the time,” Branch said. “You’re either invested or you’re not invested and that’s what we need moving forward into the new year. We’re gonna hit it hard and I told them, ‘If you’re not invested in these next five, six days, then that won’t work.’ There’s still a couple of guys not on the same page, and that’s kind of why I was the way that I was (late in the games).”
Española will have a total of 10 days off before traveling to the Belen High School Eagles (5-6) Jan. 8, then they return for their first home game in what should be a showdown with Class 4A’s No. 2 ranked team in the Gallup High School Bengals (6-3) Jan. 10.
“These two wins were confidence boosters for us,” Trujillo said. “We get back on the winning side and that feels good.”
While Española returned the leadership and production of Trujillo, guard Zach Mascareñas was absent and Branch declined to commit on his status with the team. However, Branch said he’s excited about the return of Jordan Duda, who has been away from the team.
“We expect him to come in right away and make a very positive impact,” Branch said. “He’s a good defender and he flat out gets after it the way I want them to.”
The host Rams from Rio Rancho outlasted Hope Christian 73-72 in the championship game Dec. 29 after tournament MVP David Patterson converted on a layup with 8.2 seconds remaining to cap off a 12-point fourth quarter comeback.