Eldorado makes short work of Clovis boys

CLOVIS — Despite losing to Eldorado 68-44 Saturday night at Rock Staubus Gymnasium, Clovis' boys basketball team did have its opportunities.

The Wildcats had chances to draw closer, especially in the first half, chances to make a game of it. But, it seemed whenever they had opportunities to score consecutive baskets after an Eldorado miss, the 'Cats couldn't get their shots to go down. And, when Clovis did get a big shot or two to drop, Eldorado almost always had an immediate answer on the other end.

As a result, the Wildcats remained winless (0-6) in District 2-6A play and fell to 8-13 overall. Eldorado, meanwhile, improved to 6-0 in district games, 18-2 overall.

Clovis came in facing a battle against the state's top-ranked 6A team. But, those missed first-half chances had pretty much knocked them out of upset contention before intermission.

"I thought we had some opportunities in the first half. I thought we could've been within single digits (at halftime)," Clovis head coach Scott Robinson said. "We just couldn't seem to get shots to fall for us."

And then there was that continued Eldorado resiliency, with the Eagles quickly responding to Clovis baskets, sometimes with three-point plays, quelling any Wildcat momentum before it could get started.

"There were a couple times we scored back-to-back baskets," Robinson said, "and then right on the other end they'd answer right back."

That started in the first quarter. Clovis turned a 9-2 deficit into 9-6 on a short jumper by Bryce Cabeldue, and on the Wildcats' next possession, a Dominick Urioste bucket underneath off a slick feed from Brandon Romero.

But, Eldorado had an immediate answer - a Kameron Valencia trey, making it 12-6.

Cabeldue brought Clovis within 12-8 by hitting a shot after rebounding his own miss, but Valencia answered that on Eldorado's next trip down the floor, by making a short turnaround jumper and drawing a foul in the process. He hit the ensuing free throw, putting his team up 15-8.

Clovis then had three shots blocked on one possession, displaying another challenge for the Wildcats - the long inside Eldorado players who made shooting against them a tall order, literally.

The possession finally ended with Jakeem Wynn getting a good look at one, but his shot rolling tantalizingly around the unfriendly rim and out. On the other end, yet another quick Eldorado reply, as Jaylen Domina-Lovato canned a three-pointer, handing the Eagles an 18-8 lead, which they carried into the second quarter.

Romero sank one of two free throws to open the second-quarter scoring, and a Ro Morgan basket sliced Clovis' deficit to 18-11. But yet again, Eldorado responded quickly on the other end, this time with a Mike Mounho basket, stretching the Eagles' lead to nine.

After a Clovis miss, Eldorado answered with a driving hoop from Tyler Quintana as five and a half minutes remained before halftime. That made it 22-11, giving the Eagles their first double-digit lead. A Cabeldue basket pulled Clovis within 22-13, but a Valencia bucket put Eldorado up by 11 again, and the difference was double digits the rest of the way.

By halftime, Eldorado led 34-17. By the third quarter's end, it was 55-26.

"When we play defense, I think our team's pretty good," Eldorado head coach Roy Sanchez said. "We've got to decide to play defense every night, every 32 minutes. And we haven't always done that."

Sanchez did take away some favorable impressions from his Clovis opponents after the teams' second meeting of the season.

"You've got to prepare for certain things from them," Sanchez said. "No. 20 — I'm not sure of his name (Urioste) — he didn't play last time. I think he's a good three-point shooter. I think he was sick when we played them in Albuquerque.

"(No.) 22, Jakeem ... we've got to account for him. And their big guy (Cabeldue), he scored on us a couple of times. So, you've got to watch certain guys on their team."

That Clovis team, even with its 0-6 district record, is still thinking playoffs.

"I told the kids after the game, 'Forget about this (loss),' " Robinson said. "We feel really good about where we are. The other four district games (besides Eldorado), we've been right there and had opportunities to win them. We feel like we're sitting in a position where we can still improve our position. Not only in district, but in the state tournament. We still feel like we're alive for that."

Eldorado girls 53, Clovis 40 — Micah Livesay scored 21 points, and the Eagles (16-5, 7-0) ran away from what had been a tight contest with a 17-8 fourth quarter.

Clovis coach Jeff Reed said the Eagles deserved credit for the things they did to win the game, but countered there are still struggles for his team.

"A little bit of it was being on their home floor, their depth," Reed said. "They made the runs, but we were hurting. We had Brittni Chavez out with a concussion. Kaydee Weaver is limited to three minutes a quarter with her knee.

"It's the same thing that's been biting us all year, shooting. I think we missed 20-something shots in the paint, and we missed 14 free throws. We held them as long as we possibly could until the fourth quarter. You've got to get buckets if you're playing the No. 1 team in the district on their floor."

Teya Morris scored 16 for Clovis (12-10, 3-4), but nobody else outside of Hayley Kidd (nine points) netted more than six for the Wildcats.

Reed said the team still has a chance to get the second seed in the district tournament, but has to start with a win over Manzano and then get wins in Santa Fe and Sandia.