2023 New Mexico Boys State Tournament Semifinals Review

This year’s 2023 New Mexico State Tournament has just finished through the first half of the bracket. Each Class from 1-5A started with sixteen teams at the start of this tournament and we are now down to the final four in each class. We have concluded through the first two rounds and give you a recap of the State Semifinals Thursday March 9th, 2023 and Friday March 10th, 2023.

Thursday March 9th, 2023:

4A #1 Albuquerque Academy vs #12 Valley at 3:00pm at “The Pit”

The #12 Valley Vikings had the #1 Albuquerque Academy on the brink of elimination late Thursday afternoon. They came within one possession of forcing the game into overtime or going for the game-winning three-pointer. Joe Jack Joe Jack 6'3" | SF Albuquerque Academy | 2024 State NM and Tyler Kozlowski Tyler Kozlowski 5'10" | SG Valley | 2024 State NM matched each other bucket for bucket with 20 points each. Dillon McCleskey was the Chargers second leading scorer with 13 points. Albuquerque Academy is heading to the 4A State Championship Game.

5A #2 Sandia vs #3 Los Lunas at 4:45pm at “The Pit”

The Sandia Matadors are heading to the 5A State Championship game for the first time under Head Coach Danny Brown. The Matadors were in control for most of the game and led for 26 of the 32 minutes. They shot a high 47% as a team and 41% from behind the three-point line. Andrew Hill Andrew Hill 6'2" | CG Sandia | 2023 State NM led the way scoring a team high 15 points followed by 11 from Dalen Moyer Dalen Moyer 6'0" | CG Sandia | 2023 State NM and 10 from Thomas Adams Thomas Adams 6'2" | SF Sandia | 2025 State NM . Jalin Holland Jalin Holland 6'5" | SG Los Lunas | 2025 State NM from Los Lunas led the game in scoring and rebounding with 18 points & 12 rebounds. The final score was 49-45 in favor of the Sandia Matadors.

4A #6 Hope Christian vs #7 Taos at 6:30pm at “The Pit”

The Hope Christian Huskies are heading to the 4A State Championship Game for the first time since 2018 and the are looking for their 17 State Title in the Jim Murphy era. It was no easy task going against the Taos Tigers who just knocked off the defending 4A State Champion Hornets. They Tigers were led by Daemon Ely Daemon Ely 6'9" | PF Taos | 2023 State NM who gave the Huskies everything they could handle, he dominated with 24 points and 12 rebounds. For the Huskies, Noah Perry (23) and Christian Schermerhorn (20) combined for 43 points and shot 20/25 from the free throw line. They were too much for the Tigers to handle and defeated them 62-50 to advance to the 4A State Championship Game.

5A #1 Volcano Vista vs #5 Organ Mountain at 8:15pm at “The Pit”

It was a playoff thriller in the final semifinal’s matchup of the evening between Volcano Vista and Organ Mountain. Organ Mountain led for over 22 minutes of the game and by as many as 8 points. It was a wild ending where the Volcano Vista defense stepped up in the final moments. David Gutierrez David Gutierrez SF Volcano Vista | 2024 State NM hit a clutch free throw to tie up the game with 15 seconds left for Volcano Vista. Then Anthony Gonzales Anthony Gonzales 5'10" | CG Volcano Vista | 2023 State NM made back-to-back game winning plays, first stealing the basketball through an inbounds pass, then passing the basketball to wide open teammate Kenyon Aguino Kenyon Aguino 6'7" | PF Volcano Vista | 2025 State NM for the game winning layup, that sent the Hawks to the 5A State Championship Game for the second straight year. The final score was 48-46 and Kenyon Aguino Kenyon Aguino 6'7" | PF Volcano Vista | 2025 State NM finished with a game high 22 points.

Friday March 10th, 2023:

3A #1 St, Michael’s vs #4 Sandia Prep at 9:45am at “The Pit”

The #1 St. Michael’s Horsemen are heading to the 3A Boys State Championship Game for the second straight year. The revenge tour continues as they look to finish the job after losing to Robertson last season. They proved why they were this year’s #1 seed by handling their business vs Sandia Prep in a 70-43 win. Star Adam Montoya Adam Montoya 6'2" | PG St Michaels | 2023 State NM led the way with an all-around game; 24 points, 7 rebounds, 5 steals and 4 assists. Teammate Marco C De Baca scored 16 points as the team’s second leading scorer. They will face Robertson in a 3A State Title rematch tomorrow.

2A #1 Pecos vs #4 Menaul at 11:30am at “The Pit”

The Pecos Panthers are heading to the 2A State Championship Game for the 4th time in the past 5 seasons. They avenged their loss to Menaul in the State Championship last year by defeating them 75-60 in this year’s 2A State Semifinals. They were led by Jodaiah Padilla who scored a game high 30 points who also shot 16/18 from the free throw line. They will face ATATC in the 2A State Championship tomorrow.