2023 New Mexico Boys State Tournament Quarterfinals Review

Wednesday March 8th, 2023 was the start of the Boys New Mexico State Quarterfinals round across New Mexico after the conclusion of the first round this past weekend. Most games were played at “UNM The Pit” in the metro area consisting of the 5A and 4A Classes. “Rio Rancho Events Center” hosted the Quarterfinals for the 3A and 2A Classes. Lastly, Bernalillo High School hosted the Quarterfinals for the 1A Class. Throughout Tuesday, there was some great performances across the Quarterfinals Round, here’s a recap in case you missed anything:

4A #3 St. Pius X vs #6 Hope Christian at 8:00am at “The Pit”

#6 Hope Christian started the day off with an upset victory to knock off #3 St. Pius early Wednesday morning. Most of the attention was on the two star’s from each team; Jett Wyckoff from Hope Christian and Brian Kalb Brian Kalb 6'8" | PF St Pius | 2023 State NM from St. Pius rightfully so. The best player throughout the game was Noah Perry who scored 20 points from Hope Christian. He made a trio of three-pointers while going 9/11 from the free throw line. Jett Wyckoff Jett Wyckoff 6'3" | SF Hope Christian | 2023 State NM also scored 16 points on an efficient 7/10 shooting from the field. The Huskies advance to the 4A State Semifinals. The final score was Hope Christian 59-45.

5A #4 West Mesa vs #5 Organ Mountain at 9:45am at “The Pit”

The 4/5 matchup between the West Mesa Mustangs and the Organ Mountain Knights came down to the wire. It was a foul-fested game that saw 55 free throws attempted in the game from both teams. Organ Mountain’s Brandon Kehres Brandon Kehres 6'4" Organ Mountain | 2024 NM was the most dominant of the afternoon with his inside physical presence. He recorded a double-double with 24 points and 11 rebounds. In the advanced stats category; plus-minus, he was +14 when he was on the floor playing over 29 of the 32 minutes in the game. Elijah Brody Elijah Brody 6'2" | SF West Mesa | 2024 State NM from West Mesa also had a double-double with 15 points and 10 rebounds. Organ Mountain will face the winner of Volcano Vista and Atrisco Heritage in the 5A State Semifinals.

4A #1 Albuquerque Academy vs #8 Deming at 11:30am at “The Pit”

The #1 seeded Albuquerque Academy Chargers handles the Deming Wildcats pretty easily to say the least. They were led by the sharpshooting of Dillon McCleskey who made 5 three-pointers including 22 points in the afternoon. The other members of the “Big Four”; Kellan Gehres Kellan Gehres 6'0" | CG Albuquerque Academy | 2023 State NM , Joe Jack Joe Jack 6'3" | SF Albuquerque Academy | 2024 State NM and Justin Mask Justin Mask 5'11" | SG Albuquerque Academy | 2024 State NM each finished in double-digits to combine for 56 points. Alex Alfaro from Deming did his part and led all scorers with 24 points. Albuquerque Academy won 67-46 and advanced to the 4A State Semifinals.

5A #3 Los Lunas vs #11 La Cueva at 1:15pm at “The Pit”

Arguably the best and most competitive game of the day, this Quarterfinals matchup came down to the last possession of the game. Funny enough, both teams survived on last second situations from their first-round victories over Carlsbad and Las Cruces. Jalin Holland Jalin Holland 6'5" | SG Los Lunas | 2025 State NM led all scorers with 23 points and 21 in the second half on an efficient 9/14 shooting. Teammate Ezra Guest Ezra Guest 6'0" | SG Los Lunas | 2023 State NM made a “go-ahead game winning fadeaway jumper with 15 seconds left to give the Tigers a 46-45 victory over La Cueva to advance to the 5A State Semifinals.

4A #4 Artesia vs #12 Valley at 3:00pm at “The Pit”

The Valley Vikings pulled off their second straight upset victory in this years State Tournament. In the first round they knock off #5 Gallup and now they just got passed #4 Artesia 49-48. It was a back and forth game between the two as Nick Sanchez Nick Sanchez 5'9" | PG Artesia | 2023 State NM from Artesia and Tyler Kozlowski Tyler Kozlowski 5'10" | SG Valley | 2024 State NM matched point for point. Nick Sanchez Nick Sanchez 5'9" | PG Artesia | 2023 State NM had a game high 24 points while Tyler Kozlowski Tyler Kozlowski 5'10" | SG Valley | 2024 State NM was close behind with 18 points. The play of the game was Julian Chavez Julian Chavez 6'1" | SG Valley | 2024 State NM hitting the game winning jumper to send Valley back to the 4A State Semifinals. The finals score was Valley 49-48.

5A #2 Sandia vs #7 Cleveland at 4:45pm at “The Pit”

This matchup between the Sandia Matadors and the Cleveland Storm felt like a championship game. This game saw 10 lead changes throughout the evening and 8 ties before we went to overtime tied at 56. Cleveland led for nearly half of the game before Andrew Hill Andrew Hill 6'2" | CG Sandia | 2023 State NM from Sandia took over scoring a game high 32 points. Tied at 62 on the verge of another overtime period, Dalen Moyer Dalen Moyer 6'0" | CG Sandia | 2023 State NM from Sandia called game with a pull-up jumper to send Sandia to the 5A State Semifinals. Remy Albrecht Remy Albrecht 5'6" | PG Cleveland | 2026 State NM led Cleveland with 20 points followed by another 18 from teammate Daniel Steverson Daniel Steverson 6'2" | SG Cleveland | 2024 State NM . The final score was Sandia 64-62.

4A #2 Highland vs #7 Taos at 6:30pm at “The Pit”

The Taos Tigers pulled off the biggest upset in the State Tournament across New Mexico tonight. After trailing for nearly 70% of the game and by 6 at the start of the 4th quarter, the Tigers found a way to unseat the defending 4A Champion, Highland Hornets. They outscored Highland 21-13 in the fourth quarter and were led by Star Daemon Ely Daemon Ely 6'9" | PF Taos | 2023 State NM ‘s 24 points and 9 rebounds. The final score was Taos 56-54.

5A #1 Volcano Vista vs #9 Atrisco Heritage at “The Pit”

The Volcano Vista Hawks, the defending 5A State Champions had their hands full tonight vs an experienced familiar Atrisco Heritage team. The game was competitive and close throughout the night but Volcano Vista’s big’s Kenyon Aguino Kenyon Aguino 6'7" | PF Volcano Vista | 2025 State NM and Sean Alter Sean Alter 6'9" | PF Volcano Vista | 2023 State NM were just too much for Atrisco Heritage to handle. Those two combined for 28 points and 23 rebounds. Latavious Morris Latavious Morris 5'8" | PG Atrisco Heritage | 2025 State NM from Atrisco Heritage had a strong game scoring 25 points but the final score was Volcano Vista 54-49.