Local basketball teams ready for final push towards postseason

Steven Bortstein, Farmington Daily Times
·3 min read

FARMINGTON − In addition to top-ranked squads from Navajo Prep, Kirtland Central and Farmington High Schools, local and area basketball teams from across the county are making a push for district tournament seedings.

Here's a look at some of this week's most important matchups as teams head into the final weeks of the regular season.

Boys Basketball

West Mesa at Farmington, Tuesday, 7 p.m.

The Scorpions dropped its matchup against West Mesa on Jan. 21 on the road by a final of 55-54. Cody Vassar-Steen scored 18 points in the contest, but also went 6-for-15 from the field.

Farmington head coach Larry-Don Chitty called the team's performance "the best game of the season" at that point, but also knew the team would have to win games like those in order to have a realistic chance at postseason success.

"We have to win games or none of this matters," Chitty said. "That was just another chapter of some great games against West Mesa."

The Mustangs are two games back of District 2-5A leading Sandia in the overall standings while having lost two in a row last week. They came into last weekend ranked seventh overall in Class 5A with Farmington ranked 15th in the state.

Kirtland Central at Bloomfield, Friday, 7 p.m.

The Kirtland Central boys basketball team are one of three teams with winning records this season, along with District 1-4A co-leaders Gallup and the Bobcats, who come off a big win over Aztec.

Bloomfield's Xavier Abernathy drives past Aztec's Jaden Sims to the basket in the first quarter on Tuesday, January 31, 2023 at Bobcat Gym.
Bloomfield's Xavier Abernathy drives past Aztec's Jaden Sims to the basket in the first quarter on Tuesday, January 31, 2023 at Bobcat Gym.

The Bobcats are led by Sam Slivers, Andrew Florez and David Nielsen, each scoring more than 11 points per game this season. Kirtland Central's Satchel Hogue is averaging more than 18 points per game this season, including a 30-point performance on Jan. 24 when the Broncos beat Bloomfield by a score of 58-50.

Kirtland Central has a record of 23-12 against the Bobcats dating back to 2005 and have won six of the last eight meetings.

Girls Basketball

Miyamura at Bloomfield, Thursday, 7 p.m.

The Lady Bobcats earned its first district win of the season on the road at Miyamura on Jan. 21 when they handled the Lady Patriots a 54-43 defeat. Aliya Quintana scored 19 points and grabbed 14 rebounds while Danielle Johnson added 13 points and a pair of blocked shots in a winning effort.

Bloomfield had a record of 13-7 heading into the week and were ranked ninth in Class 4A by MaxPreps. The Lady Bobcats have a record of 10-12 in *its 22 meetings with Miyamura. The Bloomfield win on Jan. 21 snapped a four-game losing game streak against Miyamura.

Eldorado at Farmington, Friday, 7 p.m.

The Lady Scorpions are coming off an 8-point win on the road over Eldorado last month, while getting more than 42 points per game this season from the trio of Anitielu sisters, including senior Kamalani Anitielu, who recently surpassed 1,000 career points.

Junior Kapiolani Anitielu is the Lady Scorpions leading scorer with more than 18 points per game. Meantime, the Golden Eagles are led by sophomore Bella Hines, averaging more than 28 points and 11 rebounds this season. Hines scored 36 points when these teams last met.

Farmington is 7-4 in its rivalry with Eldorado and have won each of the last four encounters.

This article originally appeared on Farmington Daily Times: Local basketball teams make final push for postseason momentum