Lady Broncs thrive on pressure; PV also still in the dance

By Sunnie R. Clahchischiligi
Special to the Times

ALBUQUERQUE

The deafening crowd, high-pressure game, and the test of composure is exactly what the Kirtland Central High School girls’ basketball team lives for.

While most turn away from intense games and environments, the No 2-seeded Lady Broncos thrive on pressure and use it to their advantage as they did in the state 4A quarterfinals on Tuesday when they defeated No. 10 Gallup 61-54.

Kirtland Central head coach Devon Manning said his team was able to play their game in a manner that allowed them to play their best.

“I’ve rubbed off on them a little bit, telling them just keep doing what we’re doing, don’t panic …,” he said. “We stayed true to ourselves, we made mistakes yes, but overall, we stayed true to ourselves and we were fortunate to come out with a victory.”

Kirtland Central battled with Gallup from the start but found a window for a heavy lead late in the first quarter and made a 12-0 run to close the quarter with a 20-10 lead.

Gallup answered back with its own 8-0 run to kick off the second quarter and trailed 20-17, but Kirtland Central was unwilling to let up.

The Lady Broncos took over the lead again 32-23 going into the half.

Manning said he simply asked his team do more of what they were already doing and that that would take them far.

“We’ve been trying to pressure teams the whole court for 34 minutes, staying true to ourselves is not panicking, running our offense to get good shots,” he said. “Because when we did run our offense well, we did get good shots in key moments.”

Gallup made it clear that they were not going anywhere just yet in the second half. They came out with another 8-0 run to kick off the third quarter and trailed 32-31.

But Kirtland Central continued to make key plays that pulled them ahead 37-31. The Lady Broncos led 42-39 after three quarters.

Kirtland Central took advantage of more opportunities than Gallup in the final quarter. The Lady Broncos made a 7-0 run to secure the lead before Gallup came within three points.

The final four points for Kirtland Central came from the free throw line and the Lady Broncos closed in for the 61-54 win.

Manning said his team did come through in important moments and they did it by playing Kirtland Central Lady Broncos basketball.

“Give these girls credit because it’s hard to hit those shots when there’s six, seven thousand people watching you and half of those people want you to miss the shot,” he said. “Give these girls credit for stepping up in those big moments. These are the moments we want to be in, but we still got another game to take care of now and hopefully it will be another fun game.”

The win advances Kirtland Central to the semifinals where they will meet No. 3 Portales at 11:30 a.m. today at Dreamstyle Arena.

Piedra Vista

The Piedra Vista Lady Panthers continue to dance.

The No. 2-seeded Panthers defeated district rivals Farmington 68-51 in the quarterfinals on Tuesday and move onto the semis with No. 3 Volcano Vista today at 9:45 a.m.

Piedra Vista head coach Joe Reed said his team turned up their defense against Farmington, a good shooting team, and it ultimately paid off.

“First half, we played nails defense,” he said. “The communication was there, the girls did a great job of hedging. Keeping a team that likes to score in the 70s to 11 points at the half is pretty special.”
Both teams had a rough start but Piedra Vista was able to lead 12-7 in the first quarter and extended the lead to 32-11 at the half.

Farmington was able to get some of their ducks in a row in the third quarter and matched Piedra Vista at 20 points for the quarter. Piedra Vista led 52-31 after three quarters. Piedra Vista continued to crash the boards and kept Farmington at bay.

Reed said his team had a lot to work on between Tuesday and Thursday but he was confident in his team.

“I still don’t think we’ve peaked yet; I think we’re moving in the right direction,” he said. “We’ve just got to put together a full four quarters.”

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