First IML win comes at home, 53-47
Even after sophomore reserve guard Joseph Atencio’s monster second quarter – which helped Ignacio take a ten-point lead near the end of the first half – and even with opposing Monte Vista minus senior star Azariah Hurtado, the Bobcats were forced to fully earn their first 3A/4A Intermountain League victory this winter.
For when the fourth quarter Saturday evening, Jan. 31, inside IHS Gymnasium commenced, the visiting Pirates had pulled themselves level with the ’Cats at 39-39, shaking off 3A Ignacio’s 5-0 burst beginning the third. Which actually came as an answer to 3A MVHS’ 8-0 run – capped by junior John Jake ‘J.J.’ Naranjo’s buzzer-beating three-pointer – that had chopped IHS’ 28-18 advantage down to practically nothing.
But after senior Sonny Flores began the final frame with a tie-breaking two-pointer, Atencio followed with his third trey – assisted by senior Stoney White Thunder-Lucero – in the game, increasing Ignacio’s edge to 44-39 with 6:22 left in regulation. Senior Trace Crane added another two points to the pad with a close-range basket, but Naranjo struck back with a triple and sophomore Manny Jiron followed with an inside basket assisted by senior Domyon Naranjo.
The Bobcats caught a major break not long after, when Pirate senior guard Kelby Mondragon (11 points) fouled out with 4:09 remaining, but Atencio failed to sink either resulting free throw. Jiron (4 points) then fouled out with 2:10 to go, but IHS again failed to benefit on the scoreboard when Crane inexplicably missed a pair.
He would, however, drain two with 56.4 seconds left, and Monte Vista head coach Jaime Hurtado used a timeout with 52.2 remaining and the Pirates trailing 48-44. Whatever was planned, however, didn’t have the time to properly develop, and Domyon Naranjo (8 points) fouled out with 0:42.9 left.
Red-hot in the early goings with seven of IHS’ 11 first-quarter points, Flores missed both awarded FTs and the Pirates yet again were not sufficiently sunk. That is, until Bobcat senior Rance Rathjen stole the ball back seconds after the guys in green had snagged the rebound after Flores’ second miss.
Rathjen then got the rock to junior guard Thunder Windy Boy, who was fouled. Able to make one of two tries from the sort-of-charitable stripe, Windy Boy more importantly expanded Ignacio’s lead to five points – pressing Monte Vista to begin thinking deep.
Not deepLY, but deep as in from beyond the three-point line, needing no less than two long bombs to perhaps snatch victory from defeat. But with no Azariah Hurtado (who sprained an ankle during a 63-30 home loss the night before to 4A Montezuma-Cortez) and three other regulars disqualified and out of the mix, MVHS’ options were quite limited. It all became moot, however, when the Pirates were hit with an intentional foul trying to prevent Windy Boy from netting a game-clinching breakaway layup with 0:11.9 left.
Having made another free throw moments before, Windy Boy (4 points; 4-6 FT) then swished both freebies resulting from the infraction, and after the ’Cats then inbounded, Crane was hacked and proceeded to make one of his last two FTs – increasing IHS’ solidified lead to 53-44 before J.J. Naranjo (13 points) shut the show down with another last-second three-ball.
Crane (5-11 FT) finished with a game-high 17 points and Atencio (0-3 FT) ended up with 13. Flores (3-6 FT) ended up with ten points, Rathjen chipped in six and White Thunder-Lucero three. The Bobcats ended up making just 12 of 26 free throws, while the Pirates (8-6 overall, 1-4 IML) knocked down nine of ten.
Looking ahead, Ignacio (8-8, 1-5) will next travel on Saturday, Feb. 7, to 4A Pagosa Springs, then on the 12th to 3A Bayfield before starting a critical three-game homestand on the 13th against La Jara-based 3A Centauri.