Josiah Fresquez had a big night Tuesday scoring 28 points to lead the Toppers to victory over the Pojoaque Elks played in Ben Lujan Gymnasium in Pojoaque. The Toppers led the game throughout and managed to hang on in the closing minutes to win 64-60. They will continue in post season play against the Española Devils 6 p.m. today in Española. Photo by John McHale/ladailypost.com
Niko Garcia was a force on both offense and defense and scored 13 points for the game. Photo by John McHale/ladailypost.com
By MIKE COTE
Sports
Los Alamos Daily Post
For the second straight game, Josiah Fresquez had a big night against the Pojoaque Valley Elks.
On Tuesday, however, the sophomore point guard for the Los Alamos Hilltopper boys basketball team got things going earlier on the clock.
Fresquez scored 11 points in the first quarter of Tuesday’s District 2-4A tournament quarterfinal game, then dropped in 8 more in the fourth quarter, finishing with 28 points, as the Hilltoppers held on for a 64-60 victory at Ben Lujan Gymnasium.
That game was broadcast on the Los Alamos Daily Post’s YouTube channel.
With Tuesday’s win, Los Alamos advances to tonight’s tournament semifinal game where it will face the Espanola Valley Sundevils in Española.
Los Alamos (12-16) took on Pojoaque Valley (16-11) in the teams’ regular season finale Feb. 17. In that game, Pojoaque Valley led for the bulk of the contest but Fresquez, who had a quiet night until the final quarter, scored 18 points and got the Hilltoppers within a bucket of the Elks before the Elks were able to put things away late.
Early in Tuesday’s tournament game, Fresquez came up with three straight layups, including one 3-point-play, to give the Hilltoppers an early spark.
Los Alamos led by as many as 19 in the second half, but Pojoaque Valley, behind its star Derek Sanchez, rallied. The two teams were neck-and-neck in the fourth quarter.
But Los Alamos was able to close out the contest from the free throw line. Fresquez, Enrique Tafoya and Isaac Manzanares hit big foul shots late to seal the victory – Manzanares hit a free throw coming in off the bench in the fourth quarter when Fresquez was hurt driving to the basket.
Niko Garcia, the Hilltoppers’ leading scorer, had 13 points Tuesday, while Eddie Gartz and Kyle Evenhus both came up with 7.
Sanchez, who has been getting some attention from college scouts, had 34 points Tuesday, the second time this season he’s dropped in more than 30 against Los Alamos. Tobias Velasquez added 13 points for the Elks.
Should the Hilltoppers prevail tonight – they’ve beaten Espanola Valley twice this season and lost the third meeting on a buzzer-beating 3-pointer – they would advance to the championship game of the 2-4A tournament.
Tonight’s game is scheduled for 6 p.m. – it also will be broadcast on the Los Alamos Daily Post’s YouTube channel – and the district tournament title game will be 6 p.m. Friday, hosted by 2-4A regular season champion Taos.
Rick Valdez drives past DJ Jaramillo in the 1st quarter to score. Photo by John McHale/ladailypost.com
Eddie Gartz blocks Tobias Velasquez’s shot attempt and scored 7 points for the game. Photo by John McHale/ladailypost.com
Niko Garcia picks up a loose ball under the Elk’s basket and heads to Topper country. Photo by John McHale/ladailypost.com
Josiah Fresquez was a serious force on the Topper offense, bringing the ball down court through tough Elk defense all night. Photo by John McHale/ladailypost.com
