Michael Naranjo and Adam Paulson line up for a free throw. Courtesy photoBy NICCOLO SNYDER
Student Intern
Los Alamos Daily Post
This season’s Los Alamos High School Boys Basketball team went head to head in a clash with Valencia High School Nov. 22 in Griffith Gymasium.
The Toppers C team was first to go and fell to Valencia 40-32. The game was hard fought, but the Jaguars got the edge in the end.
The JV was up next and looked hyped up for their first match of the season. The Toppers struggled in the first half with scoring. They had multiple opportunities but couldn’t convert, resulting in a 26-14 deficit at the end of the first half.
After a half time talk, they came out again to do battle and managed 19 points in the half but could not keep the Jaguars down. The game ended with a Topper loss 52-33.
If the Toppers convert more often and improve their communication, they have a gleaming season ahead of them.
Before the start of the Varsity game, the boys’ warm up was quite a show with several spectacular dunks. The Varsity did not have as big of a home court advantage as most of the crowd was mild. In the first quarter, the Toppers seemed slow to start and lost their lead losing by five going into the second quarter. Once the Toppers had warmed up in that first quarter, the game started to go their way. In the second quarter they scored 12 points without letting a single point in from the Jaguars offense.
The Toppers came into the second half with a mindset to maintain their lead, which they did. They fought for every point and kept the lead in the end with a first game win 44-37. If the Varsity can increase their field goal percentage they are looking forward to a super duper season.
After the game Michael Naranjo, one of the more influential players in the game, said, “We played well as a team and we are looking forward to playing and winning some more games.” Let’s all hope Naranjo is right and they keep winning games.
