Diné Warriors best Alamo in annual rematch

Posted by Quentin Jodie | Jan 1, 2020 | Basketball |

ALBUQUERQUE

Playing in their fourth straight Striking Eagle Native American Invitational finale, the Tsé Yi’ Gai Diné Warriors struck gold again in the small schools boys’ bracket on Saturday night.

The Diné Warriors beat longtime rival Alamo Navajo by a 50-42 count in a rematch of last year’s Bear Bracket at Johnson Arena on the University of New Mexico campus.
“This feels great,” said Tsé Yi’ Gai coach Edwin Chiquito, whose team improved to 8-3 overall. “The kids have worked hard for this and they surely deserve it.”

Chiquito said they’ve played Alamo Navajo (7-4) in three of the last four finals with the Cougars getting the best of them in 2016.

In their latest championship win, the Diné Warriors used a couple of runs at the start of both halves to get some separation.

Tsé Yi’ Gai opened Saturday’s finale with a 16-2 advantage after a couple of baskets from freshman Jarrell Jake.

Alamo Navajo got a late basket to drop in the opening stanza from junior Duran Cheney and that bucket spurred a 14-2 rally as the Cougars got within 18-16 on a trey by senior guard Robert Baca with under two minutes left in the first half.

The Diné Warriors, however, used a 5-0 run, including a buzzer-beating 3 by junior Sheldon Castillo, to go up 23-16 at the break.

In a repeat performance of the opening quarter, the Cougars hit a snag in the third as they only mustered four points.

“We put a lot of ball pressure and I felt like we made them rush some of their shots,” Chiquito said of their defensive effort.

Tsé Yi’ Gai, meanwhile, put in 11 as they opened up a 34-20 advantage entering the fourth.

Behind a pair of old-fashioned three-point plays from sophomore DeMarcus Whitehorse and Castillo, the Diné Warriors build a 42-23 cushion with 5:31 to go.

Despite trailing by 19 points, Alamo Navajo made one final effort as it nailed four treys in the final five minutes of the game. In their best outing, the Cougars scored 22 points in the fourth as their rally came up a tad short.

“It was huge because when we get some separation we can control the game,” Chiquito said when asked about building their safety net.

Castillo led all scorers as he finished with 21 while Whitehorse added 13 for Tsé Yi’ Gai.

With 13 points, Cheney led the Cougars’ attack. The Alamo Navajo junior also got some help from Baca as he made three treys for nine points.

The Cougars will be in action on Saturday night when they travel to Quemado with the varsity game scheduled for 5:30 p.m.

The Diné Warriors will be off until Jan. 9, as they will take part in the Santa Fe Indian School Invitational.

Chiquito said winning the SENAI tournament is going to help build their confidence as Tsé Yi’ Gai will be playing the likes of Dulce, Newcomb, Navajo Pine, Northwest, Ramah and Rehoboth in District 1-2A.

“It’s going to be a dogfight,” Chiquito said, while noting that Dulce, Newcomb, Navajo Pine, Rehoboth and his team have a legitimate shot at capturing the district.