The Taos varsity basketball team snatched the district title from the Española Sundevils in front of a packed house Friday night (Feb. 28) at Española Valley’s Edward Medina Gym, 62-59.
The victory marks the Tigers' fifth district championship and a strong comeback against one of Taos' toughest opponents this season. The Tigers had lost every previous meeting with the Española team, whether on their turf or in Tigers territory.
This game also looked bleak for the Tigers in the opening quarters, with the Sundevils torching the Tigers to lead by 16 points halfway through the second quarter.
Española had the three-point line on speed dial as the Sundevils sunk seven threes in the contest's first half. Junior Sundevil Jerek Duda and senior teammate guard Josiah Fresquez remained particularly threatening against the Tigers, with Fresquez getting a hot start with 8 points and Duda taking over in the second with 12.
But there were a few signs that the Tigers still had a fighting chance.
Taos junior Malakhai Ely scored 8 of the Tigers’ 12 points in the first half, and the Tigers made a balanced contribution in the second. They also played a switching, man-to-man defense to get the Española team out of their comfort zone.
The visiting Tigers were down by 10 points in the third quarter but had enough time to make the comeback happen.
The Tigers scored equally in the third, with points from senior Mateo Salazar, junior guard Roman Quintana and junior Robert Trujillo. Taos outscored the Sundevils 17-13, and their luck only improved from that point on.
The Tigers’ defense also began to take effect, disrupting the Sundevil’s offensive rhythm and keeping their opponents to 25 points in the second half compared to 29 in the first. Four points might have seemed negligible, but that small draft turned the game around for the Tigers. Ely also rebounded nicely over the hosts and proved a reliable inside scorer for the Tigers in the second half. The Tigers defense also held the Sundevils to a 12-point fourth quarter and only sunk one three from Duda.
On offense, the Tigers kept attacking the paint and kicked out to the Taos shooters to keep up the offensive pressure.
“We went down a little bit early but we just kept our composure, kept our plays, played how we know how to play and made it a game,” Taos senior forward Trevor Tibljas said.
Despite missing his first few shots against the Sundevils, Salazar got back in form and buried four three-pointers. Meanwhile, Trujillo added two threes of his own in the second half. Ely led the team with 22 points, and Salazar scored 15 points exclusively from the three-point line. Trujillo had 10, and junior guard Roman Quintana had 7 for the night.
Duda led the Española team with 22 points, Fresquez had a strong 16-point performance, and senior Matthew Lovato contributed 11.
Salazar recounted the importance of staying focused in the second half.
“I kept my composure, and my teammates helped me out,” Salazar said. “They said, ‘Keep shooting, you’re wide open,’ I practice my shot every day, so once I started hitting, I knew I was good.”
Taos head coach Hernando Chavez said he knew his players could overcome the early-game deficit by staying disciplined and focusing on fundamentals.
“Española is a good team all around. They’re a complete team,” Chavez said. “Even though they don’t have much post-play, they make do with what they have. They shot the ball well in the first half, and we didn’t play as well as we should have. We thought it was a win, with the idea of only being down 10 in the first half. We just wanted to chip away in that third quarter to bring us closer in the fourth.
“Right now, I’m just incredibly proud of my kids,” Chavez added. “For them to have the heart and desire they showed to come back in the that second half. They made some big shots down the stretch, and we ended it with what I believe to be our greatest strength: our defense. I can’t say enough about the character I saw out of those young men tonight.”
State tournament
With this victory, the Tiger boys will play the Pojoaque Valley Elks on Saturday (March 8) in the first round of the 4A state tournament.
The Elks hold the higher seed and will host Taos at the Ben Lujan gym at 6 p.m. After the first round, all subsequent games of the 2025 Nusenda Credit Union boys Basketball State Championships in the 4A will be held at the University of New Mexico’s The Pit arena, with quarterfinals starting March 12.
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