How It Happened: Class 4A Semifinals

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Class 4A Semifinals – Thursday</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Highland 66, Albuquerque Academy 37</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Standout Players</strong>: Highland senior guard <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='2293837' first='Owen' last='Cheng']</strong> dominated the pivotal third quarter when the Hornets seized control, outscoring Albuquerque Academy, 22-10. Cheng scored 11 of his game-high 16 points in that third quarter, hitting a trio of 3-pointers. Cheng finished 4-of-7 quarter and Highland took full advantage. the arc. Sophomore center <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='2402829' first='Jerry' last='Moody']</strong> scored 14 points and grabbed 5 rebounds. <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='2693635' first='Juan' last='Limas']</strong> contributed 13 points, 7 rebounds and 3 steals. <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='2818784' first='Eli' last='Dominguez']</strong> led Albuquerque Academy with 15 points&nbsp; &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Key Stats</strong>: Highland connected on 17 of their 32 second half shots, including 5-of-12 3-pointers. Their defense limited the Chargers to 13 field goals. Highland outrebounded Academy, 38-27, and forced 16 turnovers from the Chargers.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>How It Happened</strong>: The first-half was a tough, physical affair as both teams struggled to generate much offense in the opening half of play. But the game opened up in the third quarter and the Hornets took full advantage. They led, 42-26, after three quarters and continued to pour it on in the fourth. The Hornets outscored Academy, 46-21, in the second half.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:embed {"url":"https://youtu.be/D28doJdwj7w?si=tzk3uVi4DSTWTrY7","type":"video","providerNameSlug":"youtube","responsive":true,"className":"wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio"} --> <figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper"> https://youtu.be/D28doJdwj7w?si=tzk3uVi4DSTWTrY7 </div></figure> <!-- /wp:embed --> <!-- wp:html --> <blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Highland head coach Justin Woody talks about their Semifinal win at the 2025 Nusenda Credit Union State Basketball Championships. <a href="https://twitter.com/nusendacu?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@nusendacu</a> <a href="https://t.co/UW68KiYTA0">pic.twitter.com/UW68KiYTA0</a></p>&mdash; NMAA (@_NMAA) <a href="https://twitter.com/_NMAA/status/1900312062410318092?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 13, 2025</a></blockquote> <!-- /wp:html --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Artesia 72, Espanola Valley 51</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Standout Players</strong>: <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1846065' first='Charlie' last='Campbell']</strong> led four Artesia scorers in double figures as the Bulldogs put on an impressive second half shooting display to best pesky Espanola Valley. Campbell finished with a game-high 21 points and 8 assists. Two Artesia players posted double-doubles: <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1717327' first='Braylon' last='Vega']</strong> (13 points, 10 rebounds) and <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='2684221' first='Trent' last='Egeland']</strong> (12 points, 11&nbsp; rebounds). <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='2146038' first='Clay' last='Kincaid']</strong> came close to a double-double with 12 points, 8 rebounds, 6 blocks and 4 assists. <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1300482' first='Josiah' last='Fresquez']</strong> led Espanola Valley with 19 points. The Sundevils fought hard but were at a significant size disadvantage against the Bulldogs. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Key Stats</strong>: Artesia's second half shooting was the story of the game. After a close and hard-fought first half ended with Artesia holding a slim 25-21 lead, the Bulldogs came out on fire in the third quarter and continued their sizzling shooting for most of the second half. They made 9-of-10 shots in the third quarter and 8-of-9 in the fourth quarter. That's 17-of-19 (89.5 percent) in one half of basketball. The Bulldogs scored 47 points in the second half. They ended with 40 points in the paint (there's the height advantage) and a 40-21 rebounding advantage.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>How it Happened</strong>: In a fast-moving first quarter in which only two fouls were called, Artesia grabbed the early advantage and took a 14-7 lead after the opening 8 minutes. [player_tooltip player_id='2146038' first='Clay' last='Kincaid'] had 6 points in the opening frame. Espanola Valley struggled from the field, shooting just 20 percent (3-15) overall and 1-of-8 on 3-pointers. The Sundevils bounced back in the second quarter, though, hitting 42.9 percent (6-14) of their shots, including 2-of-5 on 3-pointers, outscoring the Bulldogs, 14-11. Artesia came out fast in the third quarter to take a 34-26 lead but an Espanola Valley 3 brought the Sundevils back to within 5. Artesia soon expanded its lead to 9 by the 3-minute mark of the third quarter and built the advantage to 12 by the end of the 3^rd quarter (49-37). Artesia continued to make shots in the fourth quarter and led by as many as 17 points going into the late stages. A [player_tooltip player_id='2146038' first='Clay' last='Kincaid'] dunk made it 67-47 with exactly 2 minutes to go. The fact a technical foul was called on Kincaid for hanging onto the rim hardly mattered.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:html --> <blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">The Artesia Bulldogs advance to the 4A state title game. <a href="https://t.co/520K2fXgsi">pic.twitter.com/520K2fXgsi</a></p>&mdash; NMAA (@_NMAA) <a href="https://twitter.com/_NMAA/status/1900363522909102527?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 14, 2025</a></blockquote> <!-- /wp:html --> <!-- wp:html --> <blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Final: Artesia 72, Espanola Valley 51.<br><br>Artesia vs. Highland Sat. at 4 pm in the Class 4A state championship game. Should be a great game. <a href="https://t.co/02HTlLjIrl">pic.twitter.com/02HTlLjIrl</a></p>&mdash; Prep Hoops New Mexico (@PrepHoops_NM) <a href="https://twitter.com/PrepHoops_NM/status/1900363894830571544?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 14, 2025</a></blockquote> <!-- /wp:html --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->