BY SAUL BERRIOS-THOMAS | STAFF WRITER
EDINBURG — The frustration was apparent after a combined four technical fouls between Edinburg Economedes and Edinburg North in the rivalry game.
Edinburg Economedes senior Angel Salinas walked up the court, frustrated, with his fist clenched.
With just less than two minutes to go, Salinas made a move, and sunk a 3-pointer from just above the break on the right wing.
“I knew it was going to go in,” Salinas said. “I was playing my game, just had to beat the ‘d.’ When the ball left my hands, I knew it was in.”
The basket gave the Jaguars a three-point lead, and the Jaguars’ defense and near perfect free-throw shooting clinched the 61-55 victory at Edinburg North in a pivotal District 31-6A matchup.
“This one felt good, because they always beat us,” Salinas said of North. “They beat us both times my sophomore year, and they beat us once last year. This one feels good to beat them at their home.”
The game had the feel of a blowout early, North charging out to a big lead, spurred on by the raucous home crowd.
The Cougars took a 21-6 lead into the second quarter, and North center Juan Garcia made matters worse with two thunderous blocks to start the second quarter. The Jaguars, however, would not be denied.
“What I tell the kids at all times, the other team is going to make a run,” Econ coach Carlos Ramos said. “We had to sustain the run, and we did. I knew eventually we would get the opportunity to come back. We were preaching to the kids that as long as we cut it to seven by the half, we would be ok. They played better than I thought, and we were down by two.”
Salinas, who proved to be one of the best players in the Valley on Tuesday, led the comeback charge. He got to the line and fought through the foul to start the run for the Jaguars. The Jags outscored the Cougars 18-5 in the second quarter. Sophomore Trini Moreno made two big threes to free up Salinas. Michael Barrientos grabbed a board and got a beautiful looking shot off at the buzzer, to send the Jags to the halftime break, down just two points.
“(Salinas) has been our leader, this is year No. 4,” Ramos said. “He doesn’t fold under pressure. In fact, I think it is quite the opposite; I think he thrives under pressure.”
Out of the half, the Jags had all the momentum, and who else but Salinas, sunk a 3-pointer to open the second-half scoring, and give Econ a one-point advantage.
North was impressive early behind Andrew Nunez and Juan Vasquez. Sergio Quintanilla was the one at the end who kept the Cougars in the game. He scored 14 of North’s 18 points to close out the game, but his efforts could not get the Cougars past the Jaguars.
Nunez finished with 9 points, Vasquez added 14 and Quintanilla led the team with 22.
It wasn’t all dominance by North that led to the early lead. The Jaguars were just off their game, whether it was nerves or a sluggish start, Economedes just needed a little spark to get going.
“All we needed was defense and teamwork,” Moreno said. “That’s all we had to do, move the ball and play defense. … Coach talked to us, and we just followed his direction and got it done.”
When the Jaguars are moving the ball, they can vicious. They overcame the lead like it was nothing. It was all due to passing and ball movement.
“We have all been together the past 3-4 years,” Salinas said. “We have a good relationship. We became close, so I trust my brothers. They can deny me; I can trust my brothers to bring up the ball. It is a wonderful team.”
Moreno finished with 12.
“Deadly from the corners,” Ramos said of Moreno. “I told someone, if he is there, and he is by himself, he is going to hit it.”
“I have been working on that shot since like the third grade,” Moreno said. “They were big shots tonight, but that is my shot, in the corner. I don’t miss it.”
Senior forward Saul Alanis didn’t have his best game, but when the team needed him, he sunk his free throws, and played smart defense with four fouls.
“He didn’t play like Saul normally does,” Ramos said. “But here at the end, when we took him out with four-five minutes left, our momentum shifted. They tied the game. It was too critical, so we had to put him in, and experience again got us through.”
Alanis avoided his fifth foul and went 4-for-4 from the line inside the last two minutes. Alanis finished with 16 points.
Salinas’ performance was masterful. He only scored 14 on the evening, but his baskets came right when the team needed them. In his final game at his father’s alma mater, Salinas wanted to make a statement; he did.
“I just talked to my team. I told them we just had to play with intensity and play defense,” Salinas said. “In that moment, we knew we were going to click. The momentum came our way, and we just knew we weren’t going to let up.”