Texico boys reach 2A semifinals

RIO RANCHO — Wednesday wasn’t easy for the Texico Wolverines. But then again, neither is the Class 2A bracket.

“There are 11 pretty good teams in our classification,” Texico coach Ty Thatcher said after the Wolverines posted a 69-58 win over Mora in its 2A quarterfinal affair at the Santa Ana Star Center. “It feels like the most competitive bracket I can remember in a long time. Even our play-in game was a quality opponent. They had some guys who could really hurt you. It’s not a ‘play average and win’ situation.”

Texico (23-7) played much better than average, scoring the game’s first seven points and never trailing against the fifth-seeded Rangers. Mora, however, did everything against the Wolverines but take the lead.

“Comfort was never discussed in any of our timeouts,” Thatcher said. “We did control the game, but it sure didn’t feel that way at points.”

The Wolverines, forced to go away from their inside game with Skyler Davis, were led by senior Dalton Thatcher’s 33 points. Davis and Luke Phipps each added 12 for Texico.

“They had film and knew we want to get Skyler the ball,” Coach Thatcher said. “They made it difficult, but we were able to make some adjustments. Some other kids stepped up, but the ball needs to be in Skyler’s hands or Dalton’s hands.”

Roderick Martinez had 19 to lead the Rangers, who end their season at 21-10.

The winner moves on to an 8 a.m. Friday semifinal at The Pit against either top-seeded Pecos or No. 8 Magdalena. A Pecos win would set up a rematch of last year’s 3A title game.