Albuquerque Academy escapes with win over Highland, which nearly erases 24-point deficit

Jan. 27—Few boys basketball teams in Class 4A have been presented a gauntlet quite like the one the Albuquerque Academy Chargers were tasked with navigating this week.

"Entering the week, here's what I told the kids: It's a marathon. A 25-, 26-game marathon," Academy coach Marcos CdeBaca said. "We were at mile 14, 15. This was a 3-mile hill. No matter what happens this week, we can't get too high, we can't get too low, because the marathon continues."

This grueling week ended Saturday afternoon with the Chargers (14-3), the top-ranked team in Class 4A, putting together three largely excellent quarters and racing to a commanding 24-point lead on visiting No. 3-ranked Highland.

Academy's eventual 66-61 victory in this nondistrict matchup proved to be far tighter than just about anyone could have imagined, seeing as how Highland got as close as two points in the final 30 seconds.

However, the Chargers held on as they closed a week in which they met the teams ranked No. 2 (Valley), No. 3 (Highland) and No. 4 (Hope Christian) in the most recent coaches' poll.

Academy went 2-1, with just a first half Tuesday at Valley in which the Vikings raced out to a sizeable lead, marring what otherwise was a successful five days. Academy beat Hope on Friday night.

"Now," CdeBaca said, "we have to focus on the rest of the marathon."

Senior point guard Justin Mask was the player responsible for finally extinguishing Highland's hopes after the Hive's spirited rally.

After Highland (14-5) had shaved a 24-point deficit to just three with a furious comeback that began late in the third quarter and stretched for almost the entire fourth quarter, Mask stepped up and drilled a 3-pointer with 1:16 remaining for a six-point lead (63-57).

Four free throws from Jesus Licon of Highland, 4A's leading scorer, got the Hornets to a 63-61 score with 27.3 seconds remaining, but Mask nailed three out of four free throws in the final 13 seconds.

"I didn't think I was gonna shoot at first ... that was a big play for me," said Mask, who scored 10 of his 18 points in the fourth quarter.

Licon came into Saturday averaging nearly 33 points a game. The junior guard hit the 1,000-point plateau for his Highland career on Friday against Belen.

But he picked up two early fouls, sat out most of the first quarter, and by the time the fourth quarter began, he had two points, no field goals, and hadn't been a factor.

Licon didn't make his first field goal of the game until there were five minutes left. He scored 15 of his eventual 17 points in the fourth quarter. Jack Johnson of Academy played excellent defense on Licon throughout.

"We knew Licon would be going on a run," Mask said. "We knew that run (by Highland) was coming, but we had to embrace it, stay together and finish the game."

The Chargers held a moderate 32-24 lead at halftime, but exploded in the third quarter.

It was 37-25 for Academy when Joe Jack, Dillon McCleskey and Johnson hit consecutive 3-pointers for a 46-25 lead. And Jack and McCleskey added two more 3s moments later, and the Chargers led 54-30 with 1:45 to go in the third quarter.

"That third quarter was pretty rough," Highland coach Justin Woody said.

Highland scored the next 17 points in six minutes, and continued to inch closer. Isai Herrera drained a pair of 3s for Highland in that frantic fourth quarter.

Down 60-57, Licon had two looks at a possible game-tying 3 on separate possessions.

"They're a fourth-quarter team," CdeBaca said. "We told them at halftime, do not look at the scoreboard."

Even CdeBaca, up 20 at 54-34, had a somewhat concerned look on his face.

"They're gonna get hot, but the thing was weathering the storm, and we did," he said.

Jack finished with 20 points, McCleskey 17 for Academy.

"I was proud of our effort in the fourth quarter," Woody said. "If we do that for 32 minutes instead of eight, we'll have a good chance against them."

HINES UPDATE: Eldorado junior guard Bella Hines scored 25 points Saturday in an 80-50 loss to Sandia; she now is just 33 points away from reaching the extremely rare 2,000-point plateau with the Eagles.

Eldorado is on the road Tuesday at Farmington.