Even though the Monte Vista boys basketball team had not won an Intermountain League game this season, the Pirates gave Montezuma-Cortez all it could handle in Cortez on Jan. 25.
In the end, the Panthers’ superior talent and overwhelming size made the difference, however, as M-CHS erased a one-point halftime deficit and pulled away down the stretch to register a 72-63 victory.
Among the keys to the Panthers’ victory was the ability of seniors Cordell Baer and Jens Jorgensen to control the paint against Monte Vista’s undersized front court, which did not have a player over 6 feet, 2 inches tall.
“You can never underestimate a team based on their size, and I wasn’t underestimating Monte Vista going in,” Jorgensen said. “I was ready to play hard, and I was ready for team play. We went in there to take a win, and that’s what we did.”
Although the ultimate result of the contest was a favorable one for the Panthers, the victory was by no means easy as Monte Vista’s quickness and ability to move the ball seemingly stunned the Panthers early on as M-CHS fell behind 37-34 at halftime.
Also impressive was the play of Monte Vista shooting guard David Mascarenas, who consistently penetrated into the heart of the M-CHS defense before dishing the ball to teammates for easy layups.
After M-CHS head coach Michael Hall elected to switch star junior Teagan Whiteskunk onto Mascarenas to begin the second half, Monte Vista struggled to score, and M-CHS began to find its rhythm.
A three-pointer by junior Titus Jackson from the left wing cut Monte Vista’s lead to 40-39 and a transition layup by junior Adrian Mark and a long three-pointer by Whiteskunk moments later put M-CHS ahead 48-44. Mark then capped off a 10-0 Panthers run with a three-pointer of his own to put his team ahead 51-44.
Although Monte Vista did its best to mount a fourth-quarter comeback, M-CHS held strong as an offensive rebound and put-back by Baer put the Panthers ahead 60-58 midway through the final quarter, and a three-point play by Jackson moments later extended that lead to 63-58.
Whiteskunk cemented the Panthers victory with five points over the final 32 seconds of the game. M-CHS’ star junior scored a team-high 21 points in the contest. Jackson scored 12 points, and Baer and Jorgensen each added 11.
“Today, we realized after the first half that their big men weren’t competing with me and Jens,” Baer said. “We utilized that down low. In the end, tight games are going to help us later in the playoffs.”
One day after defeating Monte Vista, M-CHS hit the road for a contest against Pagosa Springs and suffered a disappointing 64-62 loss. The Panthers had defeated the Pirates 58-53 earlier this season.
With its overall record now at 11-3 and its Intermountain League record now at 3-3, M-CHS will prepare for what could be its most difficult two-game stretch of the season, which includes a home matchup against Bayfield on Feb. 1 and a road matchup against Alamosa on Feb. 2.