Volcano's Gonzales breaks state record for 3s, scores 62 points in Hawks' win

For the third time already this calendar year, the single-game state record for 3-pointers in a boys high school basketball game was matched or set.

The new record holder is Rian Gonzales.

The Volcano Vista senior sniper pumped in 17 shots from beyond the arc on Thursday night, breaking the single-game state record in what proved to be a 98-45 District 1-5A victory over visiting Piedra Vista.

“Tonight was a different feeling,” Gonzales said in a phone interview after the game. “It felt like a dream.”

And oh yeah, Gonzales finished with 62 points, tied for sixth all-time in a boys game, based on record keeping by the New Mexico Activities Association.

Gonzales buried three quick 3s to start the game for the state’s top-ranked team.

“And we knew,” Hawks coach Greg Brown said, “that it could be that special night.”

Gonzales buried six shots from beyond the arc in the first period alone and scored 20 points. He added another five 3s — one ended up being a four-point play — and was at 36 points by halftime.

“I was aware of our school record. I wasn’t sure what the state record was,” Gonzales said.

That changed at halftime, when he was notified he was only five away from tying the mark, which was just established last month, on Jan. 11 by Pablo Romero of Springer who buried 16. The previous mark of 15 had been tied by Texico’s Jett Curtis on Jan. 3 of this year.

Gonzales scored eight points, including two 3s, in the third quarter. He made four more 3s and scored 18 points in the fourth quarter. The record-breaking 3 came with about a minute to go.

“To be honest, I’m at a loss for words right now,” the 6-foot-3 guard said. “It just didn’t feel real, to be honest. I didn’t even hear the crowd.”

Gonzales’ 62-point night broke the Albuquerque Public Schools single-game scoring record for boys; Del Norte’s Shane Douma-Sanchez put up 60 against Eldorado two years ago. Asked what his previous career high in points was, Gonzales said it was 23.

He broke Hudson Brown’s single-game, school record for 3s, and he shattered Kenyon Aguino’s single-game scoring mark of 42 points.

“It was crazy,” Aguino said. “It was, like, surreal just watching it. It was pretty cool.”

Aguino said Volcano’s team wanted to get Gonzales to the state-record 3-point threshold.

“We told coach we had to go for it,” Aguino said. “Right after that first quarter, everyone was on the same page.”

Coming up through the Volcano program, coach Brown said, Gonzales was usually no more than the second or third scoring option, and in fact he is the third option on this team, behind Aguino and David Lunn.

But not Thursday night.

“We know how good he is,” Brown said, adding, “Everyone was doing their part to see this record be broken.”