By MARIO AGUIRRE | STAFF WRITER
KINGSVILLE — For as much pride as Edinburg Vela has taken this year in its offensive potency, it came to the realization Tuesday that would have to readjust its plan if it intended to get out of the Class 5A regional quarterfinals.
So as they entered halftime clinging to a two-point lead, the SaberCats agreed to trap hard out of man-to-man sets, and limit their 3-point attempts. And within a matter of minutes, they turned a tight ballgame into a rout, as they stomped Victoria East 61-41 at Texas A&M-Kingsville to secure their second straight trip to the regional semifinals.
“We went into the locker room and we said it wasn’t going to be offense. It was going to be defense that wins the game, and it did,” Vela’s Hector Ruiz said.
Ruiz scored 14 points and Ryan Garza added a game-high 15 as Vela advances to the fourth round of the playoffs, where it will take on Alamo Heights at 6 p.m. Friday at the Blossom Athletic Center in San Antonio.
Much of that is a credit to their defense, which inspired a 20-6 run in the third quarter. They held Victoria East (21-17) to only one field goal through first six and a half minutes of the period, thanks to their press, and the SaberCats (33-2) turned the corner with back-to-back 3-pointers from Garza and Ruiz.
“Those 3s we hit, I could see them, I could see their momentum, they just lost it. The wind went out of their sail,” Vela coach Lalo Rios said of East. “And I think on our own end, we woke up. The fans woke up. We got the six man helping us out, and I think that was a big key right there.”
That ignited a 34-16 second-half for Vela, which received contributions throughout its lineup. Michael Garcia came off the bench and scored nine points, and Alec De La Cruz and reserve Carlos Azubell added six apiece, as the SaberCats sustained their high-level intensity with their five-man rotations.
Victoria East coach Peter Staackmann said his players weren’t accustomed to the type of sets that Vela implored on the defensive side. And Rios lauded East for its athleticism, saying it possessed a level of speed it hadn’t seen in the Valley all year.
“We were trying to burn them out, but they kept swinging back,” Garza said. “But we stepped up like we normally do, with fast breaks, hitting 3s.”
Garza described the two-point lead at halftime as uncomfortably close. All year, the Valley has steamrolled the competition. It endured only one out-of-Valley lost, and another to McAllen Rowe in the last non-district game of the season.
The SaberCats coasted through the District 31-5A slate, nabbing a second consecutive title, including their first outright.
Anything short of a return trip to the regional quarterfinals, Rios sensed from the fans, “would be a failure.”
They punched their ticket with one of their defensive efforts of the year year, holding a high-volume 3-point shooting team to only one make on Tuesday.
“I think this year’s team just has a lot more experience,” Rios said. “They understand that this moment, not to let it get too big for them. They’re level-headed. I think last year’s group, they were just excited to get there.
“This year’s team, they’re on a whole other mission. This is not the end-all (be-all) for them.”