Portales boys top Santa Rosa

PORTALES — With limited numbers, Santa Rosa’s boys played a deliberate style on Saturday.

That was just fine with Portales High, which isn’t uncomfortable with a slower pace itself.

The Rams’ 3-2 zone bottled up Santa Rosa most of the way, and PHS pulled away down the stretch for a 54-43 win over the Lions at the Ram Athletic Center.

Junior post Josiah Tellez (17 points) and senior guard Rico Diaz (15) both notched career scoring bests, with much of their damage coming after the Lions (5-5) had rallied for a three-point lead in the third quarter.

“Their (playing) at a slow pace helped our zone,” said Diaz, who scored nine of his points after halftime. “Personally, I think we have one of the best zones in the state.”

Portales coach Rickie McBroom said his team is making progress as it heads into the meat of the schedule.

“That was a really good win for us right now,” he said. “I thought the kids executed much better (on offense), and our defense is solid every night.”

Aided a bit by the slow tempo, the Rams (5-5) were whistled for only five fouls — just one in the second half — and the Lions didn’t get to the free throw line all night.

Santa Rosa played only six players in the game, and suffered a bit when senior Martin Madrid fouled out with just under five minutes remaining.

Tellez, who scored 11 of his points in the fourth period, knocked down two free throws at that point and Portales went on a game-ending 12-5 run. Some of that came against pressure, with the Rams beating Santa Rosa down the floor.

Portales led 31-23 early in the third quarter before the Lions put together a 13-2 surge for a 36-33 lead with 2:50 left. But they didn’t score the rest of the quarter, and two free throws by Diaz with just over a minute left gave the Rams a 37-36 advantage heading into the final stanza.

“We were moving the ball (after halftime),” Diaz said. “That opened the paint, and Josiah was getting buckets for us.”

After going just 4-for-8 from the line in the first two quarters, the Rams were 8-for-8 in the second half. McBroom noted the Rams also dominated the boards 31-17.

“They’ve been doing it in practice, and we’re starting to see it in games,” he said. “Rico had a really good week of practice. It was nice to see that effort carry over to the game.”

Senior Kellan Hightower also reached double figures for the Rams with 11, including a 3-point play in the final minute that ended any chance of a Santa Rosa comeback. Meantime, the Lions got 12 points from Madrid and 10 from senior Shawn Agar.

Portales was slated to face Texico on Tuesday at the RAC. The Rams remain at home over the weekend to host the Portales Shootout.