No. 6 Capital ousts Moriarty

Sure, his Jaguars defeated Moriarty handily earlier in the season – but these aren’t the same Pintos, he said. Then again, these aren’t the same Jaguars, either, in the wake of the expulsion of senior starter Michael Sanders from the program for violating school rules.

But a late Capital push in opening-round action of the Class 4A state tournament Saturday would go a long way in putting Senteney’s mind at ease, as the No. 6-seeded Jaguars (21-8) earned a 50-39 win over No. 11 Moriarty (17-13) on Saturday at Edward A. Ortiz Memorial Gymnasium.

“We knew it was going to be a tough game,” he said. “The tale of the tape came at the half – they shot 50 percent from the floor … and we were 33 percent, but the score was tied. I was like, ‘Wow, we’re in really good shape.’

“We just needed to stop giving them second shots and … we did a good job of that in the second half. Then we got our offense going a little bit and our guys were able to close it out.”

Christian Martinez led the way for Capital, going 6-for-13 from the floor and hitting all 10 of his free-throw attempts for 23 points.

The Jaguars’ definitive run began with 3:48 remaining in the third period and didn’t end until the 5-minute mark of the final period. The run erased a 31-27 Moriarty lead, and Capital wouldn’t trail again.

“Coach told us that we needed to pick it up on defense – contest everything, don’t give them easy shots and make their bigs run,” Martinez said. “That’s what it came down to, and I think we were able to do that.

“This was a good win. Everyone gave it their all in practice and we’re starting to come together as one.”

Moriarty spotted Capital the first six points of the contest but caught up early in the second period, as the teams headed into the intermission tied at 21.

The Pintos, who trailed 11-6 at the end of the first quarter and by seven points at the start of the second, rallied with an 11-0 run, sparked by Cody Striker, who scored 10 of his team-high 15 points in the first half. Meanwhile, Michael Lopez and Martinez carried the offensive load for Capital, combining for 19 of the team’s 21 points before the break. Lopez finished with 18 points, including 9-for-10 from the foul line.

And now that Capital had passed its biggest test of the season to date, Lopez said the sky’s the limit.

“We’re the sixth seed, but the sixth seed is going to take it,” he said. “I’ve done a lot of soul-searching and I made a promise to the man in the mirror this is my time and my year.”