Prep Hoops New Mexico: The Top Opening Week Matchups

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>With the upcoming New Mexico High School Boys Basketball regular season upon us, we have a full slate of marquee games this week to open the season. We will discuss the top team matchups and individual matchups throughout the state from Monday November 21st to Saturday November 26th.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:separator {"className":"is-style-wide"} --> <hr class="wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity is-style-wide"/> <!-- /wp:separator --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><em><strong>Monday November 21st:</strong></em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Carlsbad vs Eldorado at 7:00pm</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The Carlsbad Cavemen will host the Eldorado Eagles in their season opener Monday night. This matchup will be between two 5A playoff teams from last season. The top individual matchups of this contest will be guard from Carlsbad <strong>RJ</strong> <strong>Amos</strong> vs Eldorado wing <strong>Josh</strong> <strong>Jackson</strong>. The center matchup will be between two of the tallest players in the state; <strong>Tylen</strong> <strong>Gonzales</strong> of Carlsbad listed at 6'6 and <strong>Mike</strong> <strong>Knaub</strong> listed at 6'8. The player who outplays the other on the glass and inside the paint will give their team the advantage. The Star Matchup will be between Eldorado's <strong>Caileb</strong> <strong>Parham</strong> and Carlsbad's <strong>Damian</strong> <strong>Perez</strong>. Both of these players are among the state's best at their respective positions and will be huge X-Factors if they want to lead their schools to victory in their season openers. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:separator {"className":"is-style-wide"} --> <hr class="wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity is-style-wide"/> <!-- /wp:separator --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><em><strong>Tuesday November 22nd:</strong></em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>St.Pius X vs Volcano Vista at 7:00pm</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The Volcano Vista Hawks start their 5A State Title defense on the road vs St.Pius. The Sartans are coming off a trip to the 4A State Semifinals last season. This season opener will be a battle between three of the state's top big men in New Mexico. For St.Pius, it will be 6'7 PF/C <strong>Brian</strong> <strong>Kalb</strong> vs Volcano Vista's Twin Towers; <strong>Sean</strong> <strong>Alter</strong> a 6'9 Center and <strong>Kenyon</strong> <strong>Aguino</strong> a 6'6 PF. It will be a physical game for those three big men mixing it up inside. Both <strong>Kenyon</strong> and <strong>Brian</strong> can space the floor with their mid-range shooting. Expect the Hawks to throw different looks at <strong>Kalb</strong> as <strong>Aguino</strong> and <strong>Alter</strong> take turns matching up with the St.Pius Star. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Del Norte vs Pojoaque Valley at 7:30pm</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The Del Norte Knights start their revenge tour from losing in the 4A State Championship last season with a home game in their season opener vs Pojoaque Valley. This matchup will be highlighted by two of the state's best scoring guards from a season ago. Del Norte's <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1076702' first='Shane' last='Douma-Sanchez']</strong> averaged 19.7 points per game during his junior year last season and Pojoaque Valley's<strong> [player_tooltip player_id='1547736' first='Derek' last='Sanchez']</strong> wasn't too far behind the Del Norte Star. <strong>Derek</strong> averaged 18.7 points per game and both senior guards were in the top 16 in scoring last year. Which player will outscore the other on opening night?</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Cibola vs Sandia at 7:30pm</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Tuesday night will be the coaching debut for new Head Coach Gabriel Martinez of the Cibola Cougars. They will host the Sandia Matadors in their season opener. This will be a heavy guard-oriented matchup between both teams. For the Cougars, they'll be led by<strong> [player_tooltip player_id='1124236' first='Elijah' last='Foster']</strong> who can create his own shot and play off the ball. <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1548677' first='Joshua' last='Foster']</strong> can space the floor with his shooting and <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1295237' first='Alvin' last='De La Cruz']</strong> is a player that had a great off-season improving is game for this year. The Sandia Matadors "Big Four" of<strong> [player_tooltip player_id='1360191' first='Andrew' last='L. Hill']</strong>, <strong>Dalen</strong> <strong>Moyer</strong>, <strong>Ely</strong> <strong>Lovato</strong> and <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1552945' first='Lamarion' last='Coleman']</strong> can all create for themselves and others. Each of those four can attack the basket, shoot from outside and make plays for others. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Rio Grande vs Atrisco Heritage at 7:30pm</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The Atrisco Heritage Academy Jaguars are coming off their second straight trip to the 5A State Semifinals last season and open this year on the road vs the Rio Grande Ravens. There is a ton of Star Power in this game primarily at the guard and wing positions. For the Ravens, it all starts with Star <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1234592' first='Jonah' last='Lopez']</strong> who one of the top Point-Forwards in New Mexico. He has a deadly mid-range game and is athletic around the basket. He will most likely be matched up by <strong>Marquise Renfro</strong> and <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1076708' first='Tony' last='Pacheco']</strong> who are two of the best on ball defenders you can ask for. <strong>Marquise Renfro</strong> can almost match <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1234592' first='Jonah' last='Lopez'] </strong>point for point with his improved offensive game. The other key matchup to watch is between Ravens Shooting Guard <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1295239' first='Jonathon' last='Lukesh']</strong> vs the Jaguar Guards <strong>Chris Parra</strong> and <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1176301' first='Latavious' last='Morris']</strong>. <strong>Lukesh</strong> compliments Star <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1234592' first='Jonah' last='Lopez']</strong> well and will be expected to take some pressure off <strong>Lopez</strong> with his scoring to help the Ravens pull off an upset victory vs AHA. <strong>Chris Parra</strong> and <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1176301' first='Latavious' last='Morris']</strong> are a dangerous dynamic duo because they both can play off the ball and score in a variety of ways. If they both get going offensively, it'll be a long night for the Raven backcourt. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:separator {"className":"is-style-wide"} --> <hr class="wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity is-style-wide"/> <!-- /wp:separator --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><em><strong>Friday November 25th:</strong></em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Farmington vs Los Lunas at 7:00pm</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The Farmington Scorpions and the Los Lunas Tigers were both playoff teams in the 5A Boys State Tournament last season. This matchup will be between the best player on each squad; <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1176298' first='Jalin' last='Holland']</strong> from Los Lunas and <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1166976' first='Cody' last='Vassar-Steen']</strong> from Farmington. Both players led their teams in scoring last year and I expect those numbers to increase for both Star Guards considering they both have an extra year of experience under their belts.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:separator {"className":"is-style-wide"} --> <hr class="wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity is-style-wide"/> <!-- /wp:separator -->