Serving the High Plains
Serving the High Plains
The Logan boys basketball team couldn’t overcome a fast start by district rival Melrose and fell 77-69 during the Class 1A quarterfinals Wednesday at Bernalillo High School.
The fifth-seeded Buffaloes (23-7) roared to a double-digit lead in the first quarter. The fourth-seeded Longhorns (21-8) clawed back to a brief one-point lead in the second quarter. But Melrose rallied again late in the period to lead 36-27 at halftime.
“They came out with a lot of energy, and we couldn’t get the shots to fall early in the game,” Logan coach Kyle Griffiths said. “We fought back in the second quarter, but they made a run right before halftime that put us in a hole.”
Logan closed the gap to five, 64-59, late in the fourth quarter but came no closer. The Buffaloes made 28 of 37 free throws to keep the Longhorns at bay.
Senior point guard Dyson Day led Logan with a game-high 30 points, including four 3-pointers and going 6-for-6 from the free-throw line. Teammates Dante Sanchez added 11 points and Kyle Knight 10.
Griffiths praised his five seniors — Day, Knight, Chase Hittson, Chase Earle and Kyle Hamilton.
“This group of seniors has won a lot of games the last two years,” he said. “Not only will I miss having them, but our program will greatly miss their leadership. They are a great group of guys who will be hard to replace.”
Tristan Sena led Melrose with 26 points, while Devon Bailey added 21. Melrose held a 3-2 edge over Logan in head-to-head contests this season.