The Top Performers In The First Round Of The Metro Tournament!

<p>With the first round of the APS Metro tournament complete, we take a look at the top performers from each matchup in the opening round from January 4th. </p> <p style="text-align: center;"><span style="text-decoration: underline;">[player_tooltip player_id="1076677" first="Jose" last="Murillo"] 6’9 Center "Highland" Class of 2022</span>  </p> <p style="text-align: center;">[player_tooltip player_id="1076677" first="Jose" last="Murillo"] helped lead the #5 Highland Hornets past #12 Cibola this past Tuesday night. They defeated Cibola 50-43 behind Jose’s double-double of 27 points and 13 rebounds. He shot 12/18 from the field and Highland is set to face #4 Cleveland next in the Quarterfinals. </p> <p style="text-align: center;"><span style="text-decoration: underline;">[player_tooltip player_id="1076701" first="Judah" last="Casaus"] 6’1 Guard "Del Norte" Class of 2023</span></p> <p style="text-align: center;">Del Norte’s star [player_tooltip player_id="1076701" first="Judah" last="Casaus"] helped lead the Knights to an upset victory vs #6 Sandia this past Tuesday night. In a close 58-51 victory he scored 15 points and directed the offense to help #11 Del Norte pull off an upset on the road. Del Norte will face #3 Atrisco Heritage next in the Quarterfinals Wednesday January 5th. </p> <p style="text-align: center;"><span style="text-decoration: underline;">[player_tooltip player_id="1226150" first="Josh" last="Tellez"] 5’9 Point Guard "Del Norte" Class of 2022</span></p> <p style="text-align: center;">Point Guard [player_tooltip player_id="1226150" first="Josh" last="Tellez"] was a huge factor in #11 Del Norte pulling off an upset victory over Sandia in the first round. He was the teams second leading scorer with 11 points and played excellent defense. He got to the free throw line consistently and helped Del Norte win 58-51 on the road. Del Norte will face #3 Atrisco Heritage next in the Quarterfinals Wednesday January 5th. </p> <p style="text-align: center;"><span style="text-decoration: underline;">[player_tooltip player_id="1176301" first="Latavious" last="Morris"] 5’6 Point Guard "Atrisco Heritage" Class of 2025</span></p> <p style="text-align: center;">Freshman [player_tooltip player_id="1176301" first="Latavious" last="Morris"] had a strong impact in the first round vs #14 Manzano. He was the player of the game and scored 18 points to help Atrisco Heritage defeat Manzano 77-41. #3 Atrisco Heritage will face #11 Del Norte next in the Quarterfinals Wednesday January 5th.</p> <p style="text-align: center;"><span style="text-decoration: underline;">Brandon Lagunas 5’10 Guard "West Mesa" Class of 2023</span></p> <p style="text-align: center;">Brandon Lagunas had one of the best performances in the first round in this Metro Tournament. He scored 23 points to help #10 West Mesa upset #7 Valley in the first round. They defeated Valley 47-32. He also shot 11/12 from the free throw line and had the total offensive package this past Tuesday evening. West Mesa will face #2 La Cueva in the Quarterfinals next this Wednesday January 5th. </p> <p style="text-align: center;"><span style="text-decoration: underline;">[player_tooltip player_id="1076700" first="Exodus" last="Ayers"] 6’3 Guard "La Cueva" Class of 2023</span></p> <p style="text-align: center;">[player_tooltip player_id="1076700" first="Exodus" last="Ayers"] scored the most point in the entire first round of the Metro Tournament. His play helped #2 La Cueva defeat #15 Albuquerque 73-48 to advance to the Quarterfinals this Wednesday January 5th vs #10 West Mesa. He scored 28 points on 8/13 shooting from the field and was 4/5 from three. He also had 6 rebounds in this game. </p> <p style="text-align: center;"><span style="text-decoration: underline;">[player_tooltip player_id="1158654" first="Daniel" last="Steverson"] Point Guard "Cleveland" Class of 2024 </span></p> <p style="text-align: center;">[player_tooltip player_id="1158654" first="Daniel" last="Steverson"] helped lead the #4 Cleveland Storm to a first round victory this past Tuesday night. They defeated Hope Christian in a close game 67-61. Daniel scored a team high 22 points in this game. #4 Cleveland will face #5 Highland next in the Quarterfinals this Wednesday January 5th. </p> <p style="text-align: center;"><span style="text-decoration: underline;">[player_tooltip player_id="1076683" first="Keagan" last="Caton"] 6’5 Forward "Rio Rancho" Clas of 2022</span></p> <p style="text-align: center;">[player_tooltip player_id="1076683" first="Keagan" last="Caton"] led Rio Rancho past the first round of the Metro Basketball tournament this past Tuesday night. He helped #8 Rio Rancho defeat #9 Eldorado 68-56 to advance to the Quarterfinals this Wednesday vs #1 Volcano Vista. He scored a team high 17 points in their win. </p> <p style="text-align: center;"><span style="text-decoration: underline;">[player_tooltip player_id="1076675" first="Jakwon" last="Hill"] 6’0 Shooting Guard "Volcano Vista" CLass of 2022</span></p> <p style="text-align: center;">[player_tooltip player_id="1076675" first="Jakwon" last="Hill"] scored 15 points in the first round of Metro vs #16 Rio Grande. They defeated Rio Grande 95-21 to help the number one seed advance to the Quarterfinals this Wednesday vs #8 Rio Rancho. </p> <p style="text-align: center;"><span style="text-decoration: underline;">Anthony Gonzales Guard "Volcano Vista" Class of 2023</span></p> <p style="text-align: center;">Volcano Vista Guard Anthony Gonzales was the player of the game in the team first round victory vs #16 Rio Grande. He had a nice all around game off the bench scoring 13 points, grabbing 4 rebounds and dishing out 6 assists. His play helped the #1 seeded Volcano Vista Hawks defeat #16 Rio Grande 95-21. They will face #8 Rio Rancho next in the Quarterfinals this Wednesday January 5th. </p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p>&nbsp;</p>