Serving the High Plains
Serving the High Plains
Defending Class 1A champion Melrose prevailed in a 70-59 battle against Grady / San Jon during the championship game Saturday of the Melrose Tournament.
Bronchos coach Jonathan Langan said the Buffaloes jumped out to a 20-point lead early.
“We stayed the course in the second quarter and knocked down a lot of big shots and eventually took the lead,” he said. “(Melrose) did a jog job making halftime adjustments and applied a lot of ball pressure, which we didn’t handle well.”
Langan said his Bronchos behind by four points early in the fourth quarter and “were never able to match their physicality because we were in foul trouble.”
Chisum Rush and Isaiah Mitchell each led the Bronchos (3-2) with 14 points. Dustin Bryant added 12.
Melrose improved to 3-0.
Grady/San Jon 63, Tatum 57 (OT)
The Bronchos prevailed in their second overtime game in two days with a 63-57 win over Tatum in the semifinals of the Melrose Tournament.
Rush scored 21 points to lead Grady / San Jon. Mitchell added 18 points and Bryant 13.
“We played hard and did the little things right early in the game,” Langan said. “We once again should have won in regulation, but I was proud of how we kept our composure down the stretch and were able to pull it out.”
Tatum fell to 1-1.
Grady/San Jon 53, Quemado 50 (OT)
The Bronchos came from behind to force overtime, then went 7-for-8 from the free-throw line in the extra period during a 53-50 victory Thursday over Quemado in the first round of the Melrose Tournament.
“That’s what gets the job done,” Langan said about his team’s foul shooting. “Little things make big things happen, and luckily we did just enough things at the end to get the ‘W’!”
Rush scored 19 points to lead Grady/San Jon, and Bryant added 14.
Quemado fell to 1-1.
Elida 59, Grady/San Jon 54
Rush scored 23 points in the Bronchos’ losing effort Dec. 3 at Elida.
“We were down the whole game, and it really got ugly,” Langan said, “but our boys battled back and had plenty of opportunities to win but just didn’t get the job done.”
Elida improved to 2-0.
Logan 63, Hagerman 54
Logan settled for third place in the Dora Tournament with a 63-53 win Saturday over Hagerman in the consolation game.
Dante Sanchez, who was named to the tournament’s Most Valuable Player, scored 28 points to lead the Longhorns (3-1). Jason Knight added nine. Wyatt Wright also made the all-tournament team.
“Defensively, we played much better and forced them into some tough shots,” Logan coach Kyle Griffiths said. “We were able to move the ball around and create easy opportunities to score.”
Elida 69, Logan 58
Elida’s big rally in the fourth quarter turned Logan’s six-point lead into an 11-point loss Friday in the semifinals of the Dora Tournament.
Elida (3-0) outscored the Longhorns 25-8 in the final period.
Sanchez led Logan with 29 points, while Wright added 11.
Griffiths said his team “simply got outplayed” during that final stanza.
“We let the pressure of the game get to us in the fourth quarter, and our inexperience in big games showed,” he said, adding his team has “a lot of new guys who have never been in that situation.”
Logan 80, Clayton 37
The Longhorns destroyed the Yellowjackets for the second time in nine days during an 80-37 decision Thursday during the opening round of the Dora Tournament.
Sanchez led Logan with 27 points. Wright added 19 points and Park Strong 14.
Clayton fell to 0-2.