The atmosphere during Friday’s game between the Dolores Bears (4-14) and Mancos Blue Jays (8-11) was electric – and a bit hostile at times – with both fan bases filling the Dolores gymnasium with cheers and jeers.
Dolores head coach Larry Schwartz said that the energy and noise kept his team from getting into a rhythm at times, but that at other times, they fed off of it.
“A little bit of both,” he said. “It’s a fun atmosphere. We’re glad it happened. This is how it’s always been with Mancos and us. It was a great rivalry game, and tonight it went right up to its billing.”
“I just think it’s fun basketball,” echoed Mancos head coach Rodney Cox. “I don’t think it prevented us from doing one thing or the other. It’s just a fun environment.”
Cox did say that the noise level made it difficult to communicate with players on the floor, and that while his team had prepared signs to communicate, they didn’t follow them as well as he would’ve liked.
The scoring dripped in during the first quarter, with Dolores leading 9-8 after one. But in the second, the points began to flow.
Senior Ben Lykins led the Bears with six in the second, and after Mancos senior Adrian Hernandez picked up three early fouls and was forced to sit, the Blue Jays’ scoring came in waves.
“He’s the heartbeat of that team,” explained Cox. “Everybody looks at Ro, but it’s Adrian, he’s the guy that runs the show.”
Without their point guard, the Jays’ offense was a touch unsettled, but they got 10 points from Ro Paschal, two triples from Andrew Christensen and a bucket from Caleb Yoder to lead 26-21 at half.
The back-and-fourth continued in the third, and the energy in the gym and the Bears’ breakneck pace kept them around. Senior Jalen Balderrama led the charge, scoring eight points in the quarter.
While the Jays outscored Dolores by one in the third, they were unable to establish their desired rhythm and pull away.
“We get out of what we’re trying to do and being patient and we get in a hurry with some of our shots,” said Cox. “We don’t finish, we don’t get our legs underneath us, we just get in a hurry and shoot it and I think we saw some of that tonight.”
The visiting Blue Jays led 41-35 to start the final frame, and the lead would grow to 11 points, but the Bears hung around.
Dolores would get within three, 54-51 before the Jays pulled away, going 15-of-23 from the free-throw stripe in the quarter to hold on to win, 65-56.
Paschal led the Blue Jays with 27 points and Hernandez scored 14. Andrew Plunkett added 10 points, Christensen scored eight, Yoder finished with five and Griff Huver added a free throw.
The Bears were led by Lykins’ 15 points, and Balderrama was close behind with 13. Justin Purkat finished with nine points in the contest, Tristen Medina’s six points all came in the fourth quarter, Kyle Biery and Branden Donaldson each scored four and Josh McCoy finished with three.
The Bears fought valiantly down the stretch, especially after losing five players to a combination of injury, ejection and fouls.
Lykins went down hard with 6:38 left in the fourth with a back injury and would not return. Shortly after, Balderrama went down after driving for a layup and separated his shoulder. He too was out for the remainder of the contest.
Later, Donaldson was ejected for a hard foul on Hernandez. There was no ill intent, but in trying to stop the Mancos guard from scoring on a breakaway, Donaldon’s speed and momentum sent Hernandez into the stage.
Biery and Purkat would foul out in the dwindling minutes of the fourth, as the Bears’ bench continued to shrink.
Medina gave the Bears a spark with six fourth-quarter points, and Tristen Boren, Rueben Gomez and Casey Cable all gave Dolores valuable minutes off the bench. All things considered, Schwartz was proud of his team’s effort.
“We just went right down the line and next guy up and they still fought like they fought all year,” said Schwartz. “This team has so much character and they’ve done it all year long. It doesn’t show up in the win column, but they’ve fought all year long.”
The Bears will play against Ridgway (10-9) on Tuesday in a pigtail playoff game with the winner advancing to the district tournament in Cortez on Friday and Saturday.
Mancos followed Friday’s win with a 57-44 loss at Ouray on Saturday to finish the regular season, and they will next play in the district tournament on Friday.