2025-26 Team Preview: Organ Mountain Knights

2025-26 ORGAN MOUNTAIN KNIGHTS PREVIEW   OVERVIEW   With a senior-laden roster, Organ Mountain won 23 games, sailed through district play undefeated  and earned the No. 5 seed for the Class 5A state tournament last March. But the Knights season came to a sudden and unexpected conclusion when No. 12 seed Farmington made the long trip to Las Cruces and eliminated Organ Mountain in the first round, snapping the Knights' 17-game winning streak.   Six of the top seven scorers from last season graduated. As a result, Organ Mountain will have a different look in 2025-26 with many new players being asked to step up and play significant minutes.   “This year is going to be a total retool for us,” Organ Mountain Associate Head Coach Nick Clark told Prep Hoops New Mexico. “We graduated a lot of players, eight guys who were big minute guys for us. The majority of them were starters or the first guys off the bench. Our focus has been on retooling and changing how we play basketball because we're going to be a lot smaller this year.”   Organ Mountain's lack of size has the Knights eyeing a different style of play in 2025-26.   “The transition game is really going to be our bread and butter,” Clark said. “We're going to push the pace and get up and down the floor. We had some battles with some heavy transition teams this summer. We're excited for our younger group. It's just a matter of the coaches adjusting to how we teach and what we put in the game plans.”   PLAYERS TO WATCH   [player_tooltip player_id='2827470' first='Emmitt' last='McDaniel'] (G, Sr., 5-10): Top returning scorer for the Knights. Averaged 10 points and 3 rebounds per game as a junior. Excellent 3-point shooter as he connected on 42 percent of his long-range shots in 2024-25 and led the Knights in 3-pointers made with 60. “We're going to rely heavily on Emmitt's scoring,” Clark said. “He shot very well from three last season. If we can get him to shoot about the same this year, we'll be OK. Emmitt will probably be our best player. If not, definitely in the top two. I like the way he plays. We'll run him off a lot of screens to get him open.”   Nathaniel Peete (G/F, Jr., 6-3): Peets will likely see his minutes increase significantly this coming season after averaging 2.4 points as a sophomore. “He's going to be our next guy (after McDaniel),” Clark said. “He's an all-around scorer. He's quick getting downhill and a great defender. He can play above the rim and shoot it a little bit.”   [player_tooltip player_id='2418544' first='Maximus' last='Popescu'] (G, Jr., 5-8): Gained valuable experience at the varsity level in 2024-25, appearing in 15 games and averaging 2.0 points. Floated between JV and varsity last season. “Maximus is an incredible shooter,” Clark said. “He's definitely be one of the better shooters in the state. The only thing that hurts him is his size. Other than that, he's a solid player.               NAMES TO KNOW   Jaime Renteria (PG, Sr., 5-11): Will likely be the starting point guard for the Knights. “He's a great facilitator,” Clark said. “He sees the floor better than anybody I've seen in a long time. He can throw a basketball through a crack in the door if he has to. He's a threat offensively with deep range.”   Miles Herrod (G, So., 5-9): Saw limited action with the varsity in 2024-25, appearing in seven games. Another player Organ Mountain is counting on to take the next step. “Last year he was mainly a JV guy,” Clark said. “He'll probably have a bigger role this year. He's very quick and one of our better defenders. He's a lefty and sometimes that give shim an advantage.”   Daniel Turnbow (G, Sr., 5-11): Saw limited varsity action as a junior in 2024-25 as he was mostly a JV member. Expected to see enhanced minutes with the varsity.   KEY NEWCOMERS   Logan Karges (F, 6-1): Exclusively a JV player in 2024-25. He'll be asked to step up and take on a meaningful role with the Knights varsity this season. “Logan is a solid defender. He blocks a lot of shots,” Clark said. “He gets off the floor quick. He uses his body well around the rim. Offensively, he's solid.”     Carter Love (G, So., 5-9): The Organ Mountain coaches like his potential as he makes the move up to the varsity. “Carter will eventually be a big time scorer for us,” Clark said. “Maybe not this year, but next year. He's going to shoot the ball well. He'll get some varsity time this year.”   Quintyn Fielder (G): Transfer from Las Cruces High. Likely won't be eligible to play varsity for the Knights until after Christmas. “He's a solid player, good defender, good shooter,” Clark said.   [player_tooltip player_id='2463030' first='Ryan' last='Danner'] (G, Sr.): Played mostly JV last season. Known as a hard-nose defender with the ability to score.   FINAL THOUGHTS   Will a revamped roster lead to better results in the post-season for Organ Mountain? We'll see when March arrives.  Before then, the Knights know they're the District 5A-3 team everybody wants to beat.   “We'll be a totally different team,” Clark said. “Our district has gotten a lot better over the last four or five months. We know we're not going to run through it like we have the last couple of years. It's been us and who's going to play us in the district championship game. But this year I think we're in for quite a few dogfights. Our district won't be easy.”   Organ Mountain opens the 2025-26 season with a Nov. 25 road contest at El Paso (TX) Franklin. After that, the Knights host a pair of Albuquerque schools – Del Norte and Atrisco Heritage - on Dec. 5-6 and travel to Cleveland.   <blockquote class="twitter-tweet">Ryan had his last team camp for summer ball this past weekend. Here are a few of his highlights! Dude was on fire on both ends of the floor all weekend! Great job, bud! Always proud! <a href="https://t.co/OKro809Swj">pic.twitter.com/OKro809Swj</a>— Michael Danner (@mdanner27) <a href="https://twitter.com/mdanner27/status/1937662496606740812?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">June 25, 2025</a></blockquote>   <blockquote class="twitter-tweet">Your 2024-25 All-District Honors!!! 1st Team All-District - [player_tooltip player_id='2827470' first='Emmitt' last='McDaniel'] - Ray Venegas - Ethan Pack - Ethan Coomes - Lenny Washington Defensive Player of the Year - Ethan Coomes Player of the Year - Lenny Washington Coach of the Year - Randy McBroom 📸: <a href="https://twitter.com/mjmfotos?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@mjmfotos</a> <a href="https://t.co/Ygbj0DWVno">pic.twitter.com/Ygbj0DWVno</a>— Organ Mountain High School Boy's Basketball (@OMHSboysbball) <a href="https://twitter.com/OMHSboysbball/status/1896022176920453176?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 2, 2025</a></blockquote>

2025-26 ORGAN MOUNTAIN KNIGHTS PREVIEW