Navajo Prep wins in OT, the favorites dominate at Rio Rancho tournament

RIO RANCHO – Volcano Vista and Rio Rancho won handily. Sandia withstood a close call, but it came with a short-term price. Navajo Prep needed overtime to advance.

The Class 3A Eagles joined 5A powers Rio Rancho, Volcano and Sandia in Tuesday’s semifinals at the Rio Rancho Holiday Hoops Classic after first-round victories on Monday.

Navajo Prep will face Volcano Vista at 5 p.m. Tuesday, followed at 7 p.m. by the Matadors and the host Rams.

Sandia’s 63-53 victory against a talented Del Norte group on Monday evening was not all good news for the Matadors, since sophomore guard George Smith left in the first half after slamming his head on the floor. He did not return.

Sandia coach Danny Brown said Smith had a concussion, so the transfer from Robertson will be out of the lineup for a short time.

Sandia, in fact, has yet to be fully healthy this season; Smith and another outstanding sophomore guard, Gad Harris, who was injured during football season, are expected back in the lineup before district play begins on Jan. 20 against La Cueva. 

Isaiah Brown, the Matadors’ sharpshooting sophomore guard, poured in 25 points, including several NBA-length 3-pointers, to help make up for Smith’s departure, and the Matadors (6-3) got strong production from a handful of bench players to keep the Knights (5-4, but all four losses are to 5A teams) at bay.

“I’ve seen a lot of the 4A teams,” Danny Brown said. “To me, they’re one of the favorites (in 4A), top one or two.”

Del Norte had the first seven points Monday. The Matadors trailed 16-11 when Isaiah Brown hit three straight bombs from distance, one of them from close to 30 feet, for a 20-16 Sandia lead.

There was much back-and-forth throughout; Sandia, with a late 3 from Lavodrick Hogues, was up 28-24 at halftime.

Sandia extended to a 10-point lead, 42-32, midway through the third quarter, but Del Norte was persistent, and the Knights were only down six halfway through the final quarter. But Del Norte was unable to summon a late push.

“Gritty and tough,” Danny Brown said of his team. “Tonight was a really collective team effort, and I’m super proud of them. … Once we get healthy, I think we’re gonna be really, really good.”

“That team was tough,” Isaiah Brown said. “But we executed down the stretch and we got them tired.”

Senior guard Francois Satchivi led Del Norte with 20 points.

In Monday’s opener, No. 3-ranked Volcano Vista (5-1) authored an extremely high-functioning first half, putting up 60 on Hope Christian (3-2) and leading the Huskies by 35 at halftime. The Hawks ended with a 79-52 victory.

Leading 12-9 early, Volcano Vista, with a blizzard of 3-pointers (nine in the first half), went on a 30-5 run to take command.

The Volcano Vista starters only played three quarters. Junior guard David Lunn led the way with 20 points, including 16 in the decisive first half. 

For fourth-ranked Rio Rancho (6-0), in the day’s final game, Cayden Richardson scored 16 of his team-best 18 points in the first half in the Rams’ 72-33 victory over Valley.

In a bizarre scheduling glitch, Monday’s game was the first for Rio Rancho in 23 days, since they won the Artesia tournament on Dec. 6.

As with Volcano Vista, the Rams enjoyed a monster first half, leading 52-18 at halftime. Eleven Rio Rancho players scored.

Navajo Prep (7-1) overcame an 11-point deficit to start the fourth quarter, eventually forced overtime with St. Pius (2-4), and in the OT, senior combo guard Dylan Lansing scored nine of his game-high 31 points to help the Eagles reach the semifinals with a 76-72 victory over the Sartans. 

Lansing also scored 10 in the fourth quarter to help Navajo Prep rally.