Volcano Vista cruises past La Cueva after halftime; will play Organ Mountain for 5A title
Mar. 14—With the Volcano Vista Hawks, frequently it is just a matter of time.
Consider what was unfolding Thursday night inside the Pit, when the confident La Cueva Bears were in front nearly the entire first half, and walked up the ramp for halftime leading 27-24 in their Class 5A boys basketball semifinal.
The fifth-seeded Bears crafted a smart, controlled and effective first half. They shot it well. They rebounded better than Volcano Vista. They were more effective in the paint. They limited the touches of the Hawks' best player, and held him to four points.
And yet, ominously for La Cueva, Volcano Vista was never far away.
So as the Hawks closed out a 60-47 victory at about 10 p.m. Thursday, it was yet another reminder that Volcano Vista almost always finds the solution to any puzzle placed in front of them.
"La Cueva did a really nice job in the first half of establishing the tempo and playing the style they wanted to," Volcano Vista coach Greg Brown said.
And then the Hawks played the style they wanted to after halftime, and began to impose their will. Volcano Vista eventually caught and passed La Cueva and pulled away to advance to its third straight 5A boys basketball title game.
The Hawks (29-1) take on No. 2 seed Organ Mountain (29-1) at 8 p.m. Saturday in the 5A final.
Aguino scored 16 of his 20 after halftime and hauled in 12 rebounds for the game. Freshman sensation David Lunn led Volcano with 22 points, and guard Rian Gonzales knocked down two crucial 3-pointers in the second half.
That trio, in fact, combined for all of Volcano Vista's 18 points in the third quarter. And they combined for 32 points overall in the second half.
"First half, I was a little impatient," Aguino said. "Second half, our offensive flow was good and I just ... found my rhythm."
Gonzales is one of a handful of role players that can inflict damage at key moments for the Hawks, a team with the most potent and exciting 1-2 scoring combination in New Mexico in Aguino and Lunn.
"I feel like we just help out in any way we can," said Gonzales.
La Cueva (22-10) got 15 points and seven rebounds from Daniel Lovato before he fouled out. Cam Dyer doled out eight assists for the Bears.
With Dyer running the show brilliantly, La Cueva led 14-10 after the first quarter and had that aforementioned 27-24 edge at halftime.
But Aguino began to get his engine going after halftime. And Gonzales connected on a game-tying 3-pointer midway through the quarter for the Hawks for a 31-all game.
Aguino later in the quarter had a putback/three-point play for a 38-33 Volcano game, and he scored from close moments later, and also added a 7-foot jumper at the buzzer. The Hawks carried a tenuous (by the numbers) 42-39 lead to the fourth quarter, and yet, it was clear they had wrested momentum away from the Bears.
Aguino went back to work in the fourth quarter, scoring four quick points for a 46-39 lead. Gonzales buried another 3 for a 49-41 edge. La Cueva couldn't catch up, going 2 of 16 from the field in the final eight minutes.
Lunn also got in on the fun. He had an impressive dunk in the third quarter and nailed a 3 midway through the fourth quarter for a 54-43 lead, a shot that pretty much extinguished La Cueva's flame.
"They got more physical with us (in the second half," Bears coach Eric Orell said. "And there was a little bit of panic there for a little bit."
In the first half, the Bears shot 65% (13-20), outscored Volcano Vista 16-8 in the paint, outrebounded Volcano Vista 16-8, and Dyer's passing (he is a quarterback, after all) proved incredibly valuable to the La Cueva cause.
