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Volcano Vista's 28-game winning streak is over
Volcano Vista players celebrate at the end of the first half of a Nov. 26 game against Albuquerque High.
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Volcano Vista's 28-game boys basketball winning streak is over.
The Hawks, the top-ranked team in Class 5A, fell 69-60 on Friday night to Redondo Union, California, in the semifinals of the Saguaro bracket of the Nike Tournament of Champions Featuring Hoophall West in Mesa, Arizona.
"It was a good experience. One that we needed," Hawks coach Greg Brown said in a phone interview after the game.
For Volcano Vista (8-1), it was the program's first loss since December 2023, versus Cleveland at the Hobbs holiday tournament. Coming into Friday's contest, Volcano Vista was ranked 29th in the country by MaxPreps.com. Redondo Union was rated 46th in the same poll.
Redondo led 32-30 at halftime, and the game was close throughout the fourth quarter before the California team pulled away late. Brown said Redondo Union hit a couple of tough, well-defended shots and also summoned multiple stops against the Hawks, which was the difference down the stretch.
"They're a pressing team, and they pressed us the whole game," Brown said. "Athletically, they were really high level."
Volcano Vista concludes play at the Nike event on Saturday, facing La Mirada, California, at 4:30 for third place in the Saguaro bracket. La Mirada, in Los Angeles County, already has a victory this season over Redondo Union, an 82-72 decision just last week.
"The takeaway (Friday) is, we got to play against an extremely physical and tough opponent, and we hung in there," Brown said. "That's why we came to this tournament, for games like these."
The Hawks return home next week to begin defense of its Albuquerque Metro Championship on Tuesday.
Kenyon Aguino had 15 points, David Lunn 14 and Rian Gonzales 12 for Volcano Vista on Friday night.
