Young, fast Rattlers open season Thursday

Young and fast.

That, plus more of an emphasis on defense, are the gist of coach John Span's outlook on his Tucumcari High School boys basketball team.

The Rattlers open their season at 1 p.m. Thursday against Bosque at the three-day West Las Vegas Shootout tournament. Tucumcari's first home game will be against Texico on Dec. 6.

Tucumcari boasts one prominent returning starter, senior point guard Curtis Gonzales, from last season's team that sported an 8-17 record but won its district tournament and qualified for the Class 3A tournament.

Gonzales averaged 10.7 points and 8.1 rebounds per game. Span noted Gonzales spent more time in the offseason working out in the weight room.

"He got stronger," said Span, who is starting his 20th season as boys basketball coach. "He's quicker, and he's jumping well. He still likes to rebound, and that's a good thing.

"He and some of the other kids have been lifting and got stronger. I'm hoping that will help a little bit."

Another returning starter is junior wingman Tyrus Jones, who averaged 2.8 rebounds per game last season.

As for the rest of his starting five, Span said that probably won't be determined until a few days before the opener.

"There could be times where we have two to three freshmen out there on the floor," he said. "The lack of experience, that might be an issue.

"But we're going to play hard. We're going to go up and down the floor. We've been really locking in and concentrating on defense."

Span said Tucumcari's defense primarily will be man-to-man, but he said he won't hesitate to use another formation if the opportunity presents itself, including throwing the opposition a full-court press.

"We're going to have to press, we're going to have to trap in the halfcourt ... we're going to have to try to create things, get out there and run, create stuff in transition," he said.

Span mentioned freshman Luis Archuleta, who he said is shooting the ball "as well as anybody" and became motivated in the offseason to improve after a late-season call-up.

He said his team doesn't have a great many players at the varsity level.

"We might dress out 10," he said. "But that 10 we have out there, I feel comfortable putting them in a game."

Span said varsity inexperience probably is his team's biggest weakness this season.

"If you don't have experience, there's really nothing you can do about that," he said. "What we try to do is run some drills to put them in position so they can help us.

"The main thing is, don't turn the ball over and hopefully get a good shot. If we can run, pass and catch, we'll be all right. If you can't do that, you can't play for me."

Ruidoso is new to Tucumcari's district, and Span heard the Warriors got a boost with a talented transfer point guard from the Albuquerque area. Span also pointed out Ruidoso formerly was a Class 4A team that now is the largest-enrollment school in 3A.

"I think they're going to be tough," he said.

Dexter and New Mexico Military Institute also are in the district.

Span said he looking forward to see what his team can do.

"We have guys who can get up and down the floor," he said. "I think these guys are going to be fun to watch. I think the team chemistry is good, and they like one another, and that's important. We'll play hard and get after it. I'm excited; I think they'll be fun to watch."