Serving the High Plains

County basketball squads prepare for tourneys and tough games

link Tucumcari Lady Rattlers Kalani French dribbles the ball down court while surveying the Lady Wolverines defense Tuesday night at the Snake Pit. The Lady Rattlers lost to Texico 58-17. The Lady Rattlers’ and Rattlers’ next game will be on Dec. 18 against Dexter at Tucumcari.

QCS Senior Writer

Logan and San Jon are preparing this week for weekend basketball tournament action while Tucumcari has a week to prepare for Dexter.

The Logan Longhorns (2-0) won the American Heritage Classic basketball tournament Saturday in Melrose (Logan 71, Melrose 60) but now have a short week to prepare to host a round-robin tournament at home Thursday through Saturday. Their tournament competition will include Clayton, Clovis JV and Texline, Texas.

“The guys are doing well considering they are fresh out of football and entering a new program with a new coach,” said Randy Roberts, Longhorns head coach.

This was Roberts’ first outing with the Longhorns as head coach. He replaced Rafel Roybal, who had coached them for two years prior.

“We have not had much time to get everyone in the gym to work on our system,” Roberts said. “We were learning on the fly in the tournament.”

Roberts said the team played well considering the short time they had to prepare due to the Longhorns’ extended football season that ended on Nov. 22 with the state 2A championship game. Roberts said the first basketball tournament exposed areas the Longhorns need to work on. They are still far from being in basketball condition, he said.

Roberts said the team has been working on offensive and defensive plays and on transitioning from offense to defense on the court. He said that during the Melrose tournament the team completed a higher percentage of shots than he expected, and he expects shooting to improve in this weekend’s tournament.

The Lady Longhorns (2-1) placed third in the American Heritage Classic basketball tournament in Melrose.

“The girls did a great job in the tournament and we learned a lot by playing against some tough competition,” said Clair Rachor, Lady Longhorns head coach.

Rachor said the tournament gave the team some much needed court time. Like the boys, the Lady Longhorns started practicing and conditioning late. The Lady Longhorns’ 2A state volleyball appearance shortened their basketball practice time. Rachor said the girls are working hard to get back into basketball shape.

Rachor said the upcoming tournament is going to help the team identify the areas they need to work on and contribute to their conditioning. He said some of the girls are sore from their first outing but with no major injuries. The girls are monitoring themselves, he said, to ensure they heal properly to prevent further injury.

“We want to make sure the girls are healthy and don’t hurt themselves by pushing through any type of injury,” Rachor said.

Game time: 2:30 p.m. 7 p.m. Thursday-Saturday at Logan.

The San Jon Coyotes (5-0) and Lady Coyotes (1-4) will be competing in the Elida basketball tournament Thursday-Saturday.

The Coyotes won 78-38 against Lake Arthur Panthers, and the Lady Coyotes won their first game of the season 60-19 against the Lady Panthers Saturday at San Jon.

On Thursday, the Coyotes start the tournament against the host Elida Tigers, and the Lady Coyotes will play the Dexter Lady Demons.

Game time: 2:30 p.m.-7 p.m. Thursday-Saturday.

The Tucumcari Rattlers (3-1) and Lady Rattlers (2-2) will play on Dec. 18 against the Dexter Demons at Tucumcari.

The Rattlers and Lady Rattlers both competed in the Melrose tournament.

“We started slow the first two days but came out strong on Saturday,” said Gary Hittson, Lady Rattlers head coach.

Hittson said the girls are still working on transitioning and playing in their assigned positions. He said the first tournament experience gave the team some valuable court time.

 
 
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