Clovis boys win holiday tournament

CLOVIS - Clovis High's boys basketball team capped off the Griego and Sons Holiday Tournament championship game a little too close for comfort, after nearly blowing a 13-point lead. But, Clovis did its own tournament for the first time in more than five years, after going on a 13-0 run late in the fourth quarter that provided just enough of a buffer zone to hang on for a 64-61 victory over Belen Saturday night at Rock Staubus Gymnasium.

It was the Wildcats' sixth consecutive win after a 1-5 start.

"I know there was a point, I think there was about 3:20 to go, and we were up by six. Came down and Brandon Romero got fouled, and then they had a technical and Brandon made all four free throws, and then we had a three-point play on top of that, and that really changed the whole dynamics of the game," Wildcats coach Scott Robinson said. "We go from being up six to 13, and it changed what they had to do defensively to us. It gave us a cushion; we were able to hold onto it."

Tied at 44-all with just over six minutes to play, Romero had an over-under layup to give Clovis (7-5) the lead for good, before consecutive baskets from Bryce Cabeldue extended the lead to 50-44, forcing Belen to use a timeout. However, even out of the timeout, the 'Cats kept the momentum going, as Romero was fouled - which was quickly followed by a technical foul on an Eagle (8-4) player - opening the door for Romero to shoot four straight free throws.

Romero proceeded to nail them all, before Dewayne Dawson swished a trey to give Clovis a 13-point lead. Belen, however, was not dead yet, as Clovis began to really struggle from the charity stripe down the stretch, while Garrett Gallegos drained a corner three to cut the deficit to 62-58, with 9.7 seconds to play.

Romero could only split his free throws with 8.1 to play, which allowed Uriah Zengerly to pull up and hit a quick triple to cut the Wildcat lead to two, with 2.0 seconds to play. That, however, proved to be too little, too late for Belen, as the Eagles were unable to foul Clovis until 0.2 seconds remained on the clock, sealing the deal for the Wildcats.

"We got desperate and started playing hard - it didn't feel like we were playing hard enough all game," Eagles coach Andrew Dunnell said. "When our back was against the wall, they fought and they got back in it, hit a few shots. But, we didn't deserve that win."

In the first half, both teams battled back and forth, as Clovis forced Belen to play the Wildcats' game, until the Eagles started knocking down threes to put Clovis in a tough spot. Clovis led, 25-16, midway through the second period, but then Zengerly made consecutive treys to cut the lead to three, before a pull-up jumper from Gallegos and a late Matthew Padilla layup with 7.0 seconds left gave the Eagles a 30-28 halftime lead.

Belen then made life tough on Clovis in the third quarter, as the 'Cats had at least three possessions in which they barely got the ball past half-court before garnering a 10-second violation, and in one instance, ultimately got the violation as Belen's press became too difficult to manage.

The Eagles wound up carrying a 42-41 lead into the fourth quarter, but then Clovis managed to break the press and go on the deciding 13-0 run. "There was a rotation of kids we had in there. We were fine offensively and defensively, but we had some guys out of position on a normal press-breaker," Robinson said. "It looked rough, but we got the right people back in place and did a better job of that late."

For Dunnell, the Holiday Tournament proved to be a frustrating one, as he felt his team didn't play well for two out of the three games, and in particular, he was quoted as saying that he felt like his team "got by on talent," to reach the championship round. Clovis, on the other hand, extended its winning streak to six games, thanks to a "one day at a time" approach.

The 'Cats carry some major momentum into the new year, and will next host Roswell next Thursday night. Before that, however, the Wildcats have some serious celebrating to do, after winning their first Holiday Tournament championship in more than a half-decade. "I'm happy for the kids. It was big. That was a goal that they set, to not just play in the championship. We did that a year ago," Robinson said. "These kids, it was important to them and it's big for our program right now. We've had a couple of rough years, but last year we got things turned around, and this year, we got some good things going. It's important for us to keep our momentum moving forward, and we've done it with just a one game at a time mentality."

Clovis 64, Belen 61

Belen (8-4) - Garrett Gallegos 16, Uriah Zengerly 14, Justin Evans 11, Ryan Garcia 11, Matthew Padilla 4, Chris Chavez 3, Alexes Aguilar 2, Totals 21 9-12 61

Clovis (7-5) - Dewayne Dawson 17, Brandon Romero 12, Bryce Cabeldue 11, Ro Morgan 9, Jacob Moon 7, Dominick Urioste 5, Jakeem Wynn 2, Josiah Lombrana 1, Totals 20 20-31 64

Belen    12   18   12   19    -   61

Clovis    15   13   13   23    -   64

3-pointers - Belen, Gallegos 4, Zengerly 3, Evans 1. Clovis, Dawson 3, Urioste 1.