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Metro basketball roundup: Del Norte star pours in 60 in defeat

james yodice, albuquerque journal, n.m.
·5 min read

Jan. 4—Del Norte senior guard Shane Douma-Sanchez stole everyone's thunder on the opening night of the Albuquerque Metro Basketball Championships.

The Knights' star on Tuesday night poured in a career-high 60 points in a 72-67 loss at home to Eldorado.

"I knew in order to win the game, I needed to go off like that," Douma-Sanchez told the Journal.

The 60-point total is, according to record keeping by the New Mexico Activities Association, the most ever scored in a single game by any boy at any Albuquerque high school, public or private.

"It feels unreal," he said. "Because I know of all the great players who have played in Albuquerque."

He ranks ninth on the state's all-time list.

Douma-Sanchez scored seven points in the first quarter, 14 in the second, 12 in the third and 27 in the fourth. He buried eight 3-pointers, made 13 2s, and connected on 10 free throws.

There were 16 games across the city on Tuesday, eight in each gender. The eight quarterfinals are 7:15 Wednesday night.

BOYS: Eldorado (8-3) will play West Mesa (8-3) in the quarters at Del Norte; the Mustangs downed Hobbs 65-55 in the game that preceded the Eagles, who got a terrific 37-point outing from guard Caileb Parham in their victory over Del Norte. Torrance Burdex had 25 points, Elijah Brody 23 to lead West Mesa (8-3).

Cleveland and Highland had victories Tuesday at Manzano. The Storm (10-2) rolled past Hope Christian 81-58, while the Hornets (8-3) defeated the host Monarchs 65-51.

For Cleveland, Remy Albrecht had 11 of his team-high 17 points in the fourth quarter. Nic Trujillo added 13 points for the Storm. Alexis Dominguez had 20 points for Highland; teammates Raul Stanford and Sergio Acosta added 15 and 13, respectively.

At La Cueva, the host Bears edged Rio Rancho 71-68 in overtime, as Daniel Lovato buried all four of his free-throw attempts in the OT, including two with 5 seconds to go. At the other end, Mikey Wood for the Rams missed on a potential game-tying 3 at the buzzer.

La Cueva (8-2) advances to play unbeaten Volcano Vista (12-0) in the quarterfinals. The Hawks routed Albuquerque High 71-42, as Sean Alter had 18 points and nine rebounds for Volcano Vista.

At Sandia, Atrisco Heritage and the host Matadors won in the first round. Latavious Morris had 24 points, Chris Parra 20 for the Jaguars (11-1), who defeated Santa Fe 78-70. Sandia (9-2) routed Cibola 74-51 in the late game. Andrew Hill had 17 points for Sandia, and Lamarion Coleman added 13 points and a dozen rebounds.

GIRLS: Two of the three non-metro teams in the tournament, including 5A's No. 1 Hobbs and 4A's No. 2 Gallup, both had wins Tuesday.

The Eagles, playing at Cibola, downed Rio Rancho 64-37. Brynn Hargrove had three 3s and a team-best 15 points for Hobbs (11-2), which outscored the Rams 26-7 in the decisive third quarter. Bhret Clay added 13 points for the Eagles, who had four players in double figures and who face La Cueva on Wednesday in the quarterfinals at Cibola. The Bears (7-3), who routed the host Cougars 57-28 in the first round, are going to be without their standout junior guard, Eva Love, until about the middle of February, after a severely sprained ankle suffered last Thursday in the championship game of the Las Cruces Holiday Hoopla.

Jordyn Dyer had 13 points, Karleigh Gutierrez 12 for La Cueva on Tuesday.

Gallup, playing at Highland, rallied from 22-2 down to beat 4A's No. 4-ranked Hope Christian 63-57. The Bengals (8-2) will take on Atrisco Heritage (7:15 Wednesday at Highland), as the Jags (5-3) defeated the Hornets on their home floor, 57-46. Janessa Gallegos had 28 points for Atrisco.

No. 2-ranked Volcano Vista (11-1) defeated No. 9 Albuquerque High (9-2) in the first round, 49-36 at Valley. It was a 7-0 run to close the quarter by Volcano Vista — including an unexpected 3-pointer by the Hawks' outstanding power forward, Taejhuan Hill, who also added a mid-range jumper moments later — that proved most valuable in the second half.

Hill finished with 16 points in a high-profile matchup with AHS senior forward Leilani Love. Love had a dozen points to lead the Bulldogs.

Sandia's girls doubled up the host Vikings, 76-38, and the Matadors, ranked No. 3, will face Volcano Vista at 7:15 Wednesday night at Valley. Sydney Benally had 22 points and eight rebounds for Sandia. Hope Giddings contributed 17 points and seven boards.

At Eldorado, West Mesa defeated Cleveland 50-44 in the first round. Junior Kiana Sandoval had 17 points and 11 rebounds for the Mustangs. Sophomore Monique Sena added 10 points, five assists and three steals.

West Mesa plays Eldorado next in the quarters; sophomore guard Bella Hines had 23 points and 10 rebounds for the Eagles in their 49-29 win over Santa Fe. Samonne Cauley had five 3s for Eldorado, and Chioma Holyfield added 17 rebounds and six blocked shots.

Single-game top scorers

(Player, school, total, date of game, according to nmact.org)

1. George Maes Santa Cruz, 81 (11/21/1964)

2. Nick Pino St. Michael's, 80 (1/12/1963)

3. Bubba Jennings Artesia, 75 (1/11/1980)

4. Joel Van Essen Santa Fe Prep, 66 (1/10/2009)

5. Morgan Fennell Santa Fe Prep, 63 (1/10/1991)

6t. Otis Dale Crownpoint, 62 (12/17/1994)

6t. Jarvis Mullahon Navajo Pine, 62 (3/2/1996)

8. Damian Lopez Laguna-Acoma, 61 (1/23/1993)

9. Shane Douma-Sanchez Del Norte, 60 (Tuesday)

10. Steve Herrera Pojoaque, 58 (2/18/1961)