Sixth-ranked Eagles' conditioning, pace wearing out opponents

Brad Cox/News-Sun

Hobbs' Austin Montoya drives during a game

earlier this season at Tasker Arena.

  The sixth-ranked Hobbs boys basketball team clung to a 42-40 lead heading into the second half against unranked Carlsbad on Friday at Caveman Gym.

  But there was no worry on the faces of the Eagles as they came out for the second half. There was just a look (dare I say, a swagger) that they believed all the work put in during the summer and fall to play 32 minutes of fast-paced, pressing basketball was going to bring them home down the stretch.

  It did as the Eagles outscored the Cavemen 51-26 in the second half on their way to a 93-66 victory, moving Hobbs to 3-0 in District 4-5A and its winning streak to seven.

NMHSCA Girls Poll: Lady Eagles move up to No. 5, Tatum still No. 2

  In the girls basketball polls this week, Hobbs moved up a spot to No. 5 after defeating Clovis (now ranked fourth) at home and losing in overtime to No. 7 Carlsbad last week. District 4-5A is probably the toughest girls basketball district in the state as all three teams are tied at 1-1 after two games (though Clovis made a statement by beating Carlsbad 70-29 Tuesday night in Clovis). The final two weeks of district play are crucial for positioning in the state tournament.
  Lovington is getting votes in 3A and is a bit more dangerous with two-time Lea County Girls Basketball Player of the Year Mystica Perez back in action after missing the first three months of the season due to injury. If the Lady Wildcats can just get in the tournament (and a win over Ruidoso at home on Friday would go a long way in helping the cause) then anything is possible for Lovington.

NMHSCA Boys Poll: Eagles move up to No. 6, Wildcats enter top 10

  With selection Sunday just a few weeks away (Feb. 26) and the New Mexico High School Coaches Association Poll a part of the criteria in selecting the teams, lets take a look where the Lea County teams sit in their respective classifications.
  Hobbs leaped up to No. 6 from No. 10 after defeating Clovis 78-68 on the road Friday (Clovis was ranked fifth at the time and dropped to eighth). I think a sixth ranking is OK but I probably would've had Hobbs fifth ahead of Eldorado. Hobbs has wins over Clovis and Volcano Vista (both by double digits), teams Eldorado has lost to this season.
  In 3A, Lovington jumped into the top 10 at No. 8 after wins on the road against District 4-3A foes Ruidoso and Portales. With the Wildcats at 2-0, Ruidoso 1-1 and Portales 0-2, Lovington can clinch the district title and an automatic berth into state Friday with a win at home over Ruidoso. Not bad for a team that had lost four of its last five heading into district.
  As for the rest of the Lea County boys teams, work will have to be done between now and Feb. 26 to solidify a spot in the state tournament.

After double-digit win in Clovis, where does Hobbs sit in state playoff picture?

  After the 10th-ranked Eagles' 78-68 win over No. 5 Clovis on Friday at The Rock in Clovis (a game I'm writing a column about for Sunday's paper), I got to thinking on the long drive home about where the win put Hobbs in the state playoff picture with just two games left (at Carlsbad on Friday, host Clovis the following Friday on Feb. 17).
  I've been hesitant to rank Hobbs higher due to not beating a quality team on the road yet, but after beating Clovis by 10 in Clovis in a game it led by double digits for most of the final three quarters, the Eagles deserve to move up. Hobbs is currently 9-2 against N.M. teams (losses to 5A No. 1 Las Cruces and 4A No. 1 Roswell) but crushed 4A No. 2 Goddard (103- 79) - which will likely move to No. 1 after thumping Roswell High 73-54 Friday night - during the Eagles' active six-game winning streak.

Hobbs vs. Clovis: New Mexico's greatest basketball rivalry

Hobbs News-Sun Photo

Hobbs' Jeffery Taylor (now at Vanderbilt) goes up

for a dunk as Clovis' Jaye Crockett (now at Texas

Tech) defends during a game in 2008.

  Rivalries don't get much better than Hobbs and Clovis boys basketball as the two teams square off tonight at Rock Staubus Gymnasium in Clovis.

  Let me clarify, there IS NOT a rivalry better in New Mexico then when the Eagles and Wildcats take the court at either Tasker Arena or Rock Staubus Gymnasium.

  It doesn't matter if it's a Clovis fan getting a glimpse of black and gold or a Hobbs fan gazing at purple, both see red when looking at the other. Intensity of the players and fans is always turned up to 11 when the two teams take the court against each other.

Surging 10th-ranked Eagles may be peaking just in time for district

Brad Cox/News-Sun

Hobbs' Austin Montoya has scored 17 points

in each of his last two games.

  93.8

  That's the Hobbs boys basketball team's scoring average in its last five games since losing to No. 1 Las Cruces High 88-67 on Jan. 14.

  The 10th-ranked Eagles are 4-1 over that stretch, winning their last four games since losing at top-ranked Class 4A and undefeated Roswell High 94-90 in a game the Eagles could've won as well.

  It appears the thumping Hobbs took from the top-ranked Bulldawgs got the attention of the Eagles. That loss told Hobbs it had to get better if it wanted to compete with the state's elite – in particular the Eagles' execution on their full-court press and half-court offense.

Hobbs football schedule for 2012

  I went to the meet and greet Thursday for new Hobbs football coach Charles Gleghorn and defensive coordinator Mike Felicetti and picked up the Eagles' 2012 season schedule.
  Not a lot different from last season other than the location of the games flipped around. The biggest difference is Hobbs will play Oñate instead of Las Cruces and the Goddard and Cleveland games have been switched in the placement of the schedule.

Hobbs 2012 Football Schedule
Aug. 31 @ Gadsden, 7 p.m.
Sept. 7 vs. Artesia, 7 p.m.
Sept. 14 @ Roswell High, 7 p.m.
Sept. 21 vs. Oñate, 7 p.m.
Sept. 28 vs. Goddard, 7 p.m.
Oct. 5 @ Alamogordo, 7 p.m.
Oct. 12 @ Lovington, 7 p.m.
Oct. 19 vs. Cleveland, 7 p.m.
Oct. 26 vs. Carlsbad, 7 p.m.*
Nov. 2 OPEN
Nov. 9 @ Clovis, 7 p.m.*
*District games