2024 State Champions

<p>The 2023-24 season for girls high school basketball has now come to an end after the completion of the 2024 State Tournament. Each Championship game took place at 'the Pit' located in Albuquerque, NM. The 4A, 3A and 2A title games took place on March 15 while the 5A and 1A title games took place on March 16. </p>   <p>Here are the results with a brief recap!</p>   <hr class="wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity" />   <h2 class="wp-block-heading">5A | Benally's 35 points lifts Sandia past Volcano 49-45</h2>   <p>Entering the 4th quarter, Sandia trailed by six points (32-26). The Matadors then opened the final period with a 9-2 run, capped off by a pair of FTs by [player_tooltip player_id='391103' first='Sydney' last='Benally'] at the 5:14 mark, giving Sandia the 35-34 lead. Ultimately, Sandia outscored Volcano 23-13 to claim the 5A State title, their first since 2017. </p>   <figure class="wp-block-embed aligncenter is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper"> https://x.com/mattmtz108/status/1769114787299140031 </div></figure>   <p>Outside of Benally, Sandia had a tough time getting any type of rhythm. The Matadors went 14/48 from the field overall and shot just a mere 4.2 percent -- 1/24 -- from behind the arc! Sandia did however, do a great job of getting to the free-throw line. Altogether the Matadors went 20/25 from the charity stripe.</p>   <p>Benally was absolutely sensational. The junior PG was fantastic in the halfcourt, especially off the bounce, utilizing a lightning quick first step and elite footwork to get into the midrange and paint areas. Benally finished with a game-high 35 points, 7 rebounds, 2 assists and 2 steals. </p>   <figure class="wp-block-embed aligncenter is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper"> https://x.com/_NMAA/status/1769120195920953661 </div></figure>   <hr class="wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity" />   <h2 class="wp-block-heading">4A | Broncos defeat Sartans 45-33</h2>   <p>In the words of DJ Khaled, 'Another one!' -- Kirtland Central adds championship No. 21 to their resume. </p>   <p>Kirtland Central did a phenomenal job of penetrating the soft spots of the Sartan 2-3 zone getting easy relief points in the halfcourt. The Broncos' ability to get into the lane and kick out to open shooters was the difference in the game. Kirtland Central had 13 assists on 18 made field-goals and went 6/18 from deep while SPX did not record a single made 3-pointer (0/8). </p>   <figure class="wp-block-embed aligncenter is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper"> https://x.com/_NMAA/status/1768830760658653344 </div></figure>   <p>The Broncos were led by [player_tooltip player_id='1068199' first='Allyson' last='Tsosie'] who finished with 12 points and 6 rebounds. The dynamic 8th grader went 4/6 from the floor, hitting 2/3 3-pointers. Tsosie was terrific in both DHO and catch & shoot situations, keeping opposing defenders on their toes all game long. </p>   <figure class="wp-block-embed aligncenter is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper"> https://x.com/mattmtz108/status/1768823794217689097 </div></figure>   <hr class="wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity" />   <h2 class="wp-block-heading has-text-align-left">3A | Navajo Prep downs Tohatchi 41-26</h2>   <p>In addition to their tenacious defense, Navajo Prep did an exceptional job sharing the ball vs Tohatchi. The Eagles assisted on all 12 of their field-goals (12/42) while holding the Cougars to zero 3-pointers and just 4 assists. Navajo Prep spoiled Tohatchi's hope of going back-to-back as the Eagles held the Cougars to 4 total field-goals in the 2nd half, resulting in 9 points!</p>   <figure class="wp-block-embed aligncenter is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper"> https://x.com/_NMAA/status/1768769610319372616 </div></figure>   <p>Senior [player_tooltip player_id='560953' first='Aniya' last='Johnson'] played all 32:00 minutes and had a team-high 11 pts (FT: 7/10). The 5'10" point-forward also had 9 rebounds (6 off-reb) 3 assists and 4 steals, helping propel the Eagles over the top. </p>   <figure class="wp-block-embed aligncenter is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper"> https://x.com/mattmtz108/status/1768766879584182351 </div></figure>   <hr class="wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity" />   <h2 class="wp-block-heading">2A | Penasco withstands last second 3PA, defeats Tularosa 39-36</h2>   <p>Last season (2023) Penasco was eliminated in the Round of 16. Now, they are the 2024 2A Champs. This was the Panthers third consecutive upset en route to their championship -- def. No. 3 Pecos 50-32 in elite eight, def. 2 Tatum 42-40 in 2OT in the final four -- and fourth straight win overall. </p>   <figure class="wp-block-embed aligncenter is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper"> https://x.com/_NMAA/status/1768799425239859354 </div></figure>   <p>With 5.8 seconds left, Tularosa ran a BLOB set where they managed to get off a 3-point attempt from the top of the key. After an aggressive contest and close-out, the shot fell short resulting in a Penasco dub. </p>   <p>Remarkably, The No. 6 Panthers got the win despite having no bench points, fewer assists and more turnovers. </p>   <figure class="wp-block-table is-style-stripes"><table class="has-fixed-layout"><tbody><tr><td class="has-text-align-center" data-align="center">TEAM</td><td class="has-text-align-center" data-align="center">BENCH PTS</td><td class="has-text-align-center" data-align="center">AST</td><td class="has-text-align-center" data-align="center">TO</td></tr><tr><td class="has-text-align-center" data-align="center">Penasco</td><td class="has-text-align-center" data-align="center">0</td><td class="has-text-align-center" data-align="center">3</td><td class="has-text-align-center" data-align="center">12</td></tr><tr><td class="has-text-align-center" data-align="center">Tularosa</td><td class="has-text-align-center" data-align="center">8</td><td class="has-text-align-center" data-align="center">9</td><td class="has-text-align-center" data-align="center">6</td></tr></tbody></table></figure>   <p>Only seven players saw the court for Coach Montoya and those seven sure did give their all. Sophomore [player_tooltip player_id='648193' first='Rochelle' last='Lopez'] had a game-high 18 points, going 4/9 from the field and 8/12 from the free-throw line. Junior [player_tooltip player_id='814479' first='Alexuis' last='Romero'] was the unsung hero. Romero may have only scored 2 points but was an absolute monster on the glass, grabbing 13 rebounds, seven of which were offensive, giving the Panthers several 2nd chance opportunities. Lastly junior [player_tooltip player_id='1054276' first='Alyssa' last='Atencio'] chipped in with 10 points, doing most of her damage in the 2nd half. Penasco likely does not walk away victorious IF Atencio and Romero don't step up. The tandem gave the Panthers a MASSIVE spark when momentum appeared to be swaying towards the Wildcats. </p>   <figure class="wp-block-embed aligncenter is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper"> https://x.com/mattmtz108/status/1768796365084344824 </div></figure>   <hr class="wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity" />   <h2 class="wp-block-heading">1A | Fort. Sumner/House roll past Logan 54-36</h2>   <p>The Vixens controlled the tempo and dominated inside, scoring 28 points in the paint vs the Longhorns in the championship game. Defensively, Fort. Sumner/House was outstanding closing-out on 3-point shooters and made a conscious effort to protect the paint. </p>   <figure class="wp-block-embed aligncenter is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper"> https://x.com/mattmtz108/status/1769054350473625705 </div></figure>   <p>Juniors Emmarie Casaus and [player_tooltip player_id='888500' first='Allyssa' last='Casaus'] were essentially in the driver's seat, and were in complete control for Fort. Sumner/House. Emmarie had a game-high 18 points while Allyssa had 15 points with each player grabbing 9 rebounds. Both Emmarie and Allyssa move well without the ball, have great instincts and can create off the bounce. </p>   <figure class="wp-block-embed aligncenter is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper"> https://x.com/_NMAA/status/1769053960856297805 </div></figure>

The 2023-24 season for girls high school basketball has now come to an end after the completion of the 2024 State Tournament. Each Championship game took place at 'the Pit' located in Albuquerque, NM. The 4A, 3A and 2A title games took place on March 15 while the 5A and 1A title games took place on March 16.