Serving the High Plains
Serving the High Plains
The Melrose boys basketball team blitzed Logan with 16 unanswered points in the first and second quarters, setting the stage for a 71-50 win Saturday in the title game of the Reserve Tournament.
The Longhorns trailed only 12-8 midway through the first period before the Buffaloes’ big run. When Logan broke the dry spell with 5:15 left in the second period, Melrose sported a 28-10 advantage.
Logan’s drought occurred a short time after its junior point guard and leading scorer, Brock Burns, was benched after being whistled for a technical foul. After that, Melrose’s full-court press forced several turnovers during the second quarter.
“We didn’t handle their pressure well,” Logan coach Kyle Griffiths said. “Had too many turnovers which lead to easy shots. We will need to clean that up before we play them again this week.”
Mason Wallin led Logan with 12 points. Logan fell to 13-5 overall.
Burns and teammate Park Strong each were named to the all-tournament team for Logan.
Michael Cardonita led the Buffalos with 21 points, and Cy Draper added 14. Melrose, ranked third in Class 1A by MaxPreps.com, improved to 12-3.
The Longhorns face Melrose again on Thursday in Logan in the district opener for both teams.
Logan 74, Mountainair 36
The Longhorns had little trouble with Mountainair in the semifinal Friday of the Reserve Tournament, prevailing 79-49.
Wallin scored 15 points to lead the Longhorns. Devin Kotara added 13 points and Strong 10 points.
“We played well against both of these teams,” Griffiths said of the victories over Pine Hill and Mountainair. “I really liked how we moved the ball and played together.”
Mountainair ended the weekend with a 4-9 record.
Logan 69, Pine Hill 42
Logan started the Reserve Tournament on Thursday with a solid 69-42 victory over Pine Hill.
Diego Sanchez and Kaeden Stoner each led the Longhorns with 12 points. Burns added 11 and Christian Kotara 10.
Pine Hill ended the weekend with a 5-12 mark.