KC rebounds from slow start, beats Tohatchi

Posted by Quentin Jodie | Jan 3, 2025 | Sports |

KIRTLAND, N.M. – The second-ranked Kirtland Central girls basketball team needed some time to get back into its comfort zone on Thursday evening.

The defending 4A state champs trailed 3A Tohatchi for much of the first half as KC (8-1) stepped up its defensive intensity and used a couple of runs in the second half to post a 53-38 win.

“It seemed like we were there in the second quarter and we were there in the third quarter to where our defense was playing great, but our offense wasn’t helping us,” KC coach Devon Manning said. “We were getting turnovers, but we weren’t finishing them. We were up four, but we should have been up 12, 13 points.”

The visiting Lady Cougars nailed four treys, two by junior Maddie Pasquale, in the opening quarter and led 18-10 heading into the second.

“They came out hot and they hit four 3-pointers in that first quarter and they forced us to go man-to-man,” Manning said. After that “the girls kind of stepped up to the challenge.”

Navajo Times | Quentin Jodie
Tohatchi’s Wynter Rose-Sheka (22) dribbles the ball past Kirtland Central’s Elaina Clani (1) on Thursday during a nondistrict game. Tohatchi came up short, 53-38.

With an emphasis on closing out Tohatchi’s shooter, KC surrendered only one more trey for the rest of the game.

Despite that, Tohatchi (5-4) found other ways to score with senior post Kayanna Capitan (four points) and junior Shylynn Johnson (nine points) picking up the slack. The two bigs combined for nine points in the second stanza, helping the Cougars to a 27-23 halftime lead.

“We’ve been shooting the ball a lot better,” Tohatchi coach Tanisha Bitsoi said. “Ever since the Texico tournament, we kind of gotten into an offensive rhythm. We just got to sustain that and that’s been the story of our season.

“We have two personalities, and we can’t be that way,” she added. “But credit to Kirtland – they’re a good team.”

Bitsoi cited KC’s defensive pressure for some costly turnovers as the Broncos closed out the third on a 6-0 run for a 40-32 lead.

Tohatchi cut that margin to six points with a basket from senior guard Yaya Peterson with 6:41 left, but the Broncos turned it up a notch and finished the game on 13-4 run.

“We had some turnovers that obviously changed the momentum of the game,” Bitsoi said. “If we can clean those mistakes, and keep our composure, we should be OK moving forward.”

The Broncos were led by freshman Allyson Tsosie, who poured in a game-best 22 points, which included four treys. Junior guard Zoey Benally added 13.

“We needed to pick up our game,” said Benally, when asked if her team gave a better effort in the second half. “We’ve played some 5A team and we’ve played better defense. Today, we let them get around us and shoot.”

On Saturday, the Broncos hosts No. 5 Albuquerque Academy at 2:30 p.m. before heading to next week’s APS Tournament in Albuquerque. KC opens the 16-team tournament with Highland at 7 p.m. on Tuesday.

If KC wins its first two tournament games, the Broncos has the potential to face state powerhouse Sandia, last season’s 5A state champs, on Jan. 10.

“We still have a long way to go, but I understand that’s what people are thinking,” Manning said. “We got to concentrate on Saturday. If we’re fortunate to play (Sandia) great. If we don’t, I’ll be fine with that, too. We just got to be ready for Saturday.”

Meanwhile, Tohatchi will continue a tough stretch of games as the Cougars travels to Gallup on Saturday for a 7 p.m. tipoff game. On Jan. 9, the Cougars will host Farmington before making the trip to Farmington to play Piedra Vista the following day.

“It’s going to be a tough stretch for us, but I feel like it will help us a lot mentally,” Bitsoi said. “These teams are probably going to be in the state playoffs. I’m really looking to these games because it’s going to prepare us for what’s ahead.”