By MARIO AGUIRRE | STAFF WRITER
HIDALGO — Patrick De La Torre scored 12 points and his Sharyland High teammate Jose De La Garza added 11 as the West boys beat the East 90-81 in the fifth annual All-Valley Showcase, in conjunction with RGVSports.com and the RGV Vipers, on Saturday at State Farm Arena.
De La Torre was one of four East players to score in double figures, with the Edinburg Vela duo of Ryan Garza (11 points) and Hector Ruiz (10 points) doing their part to help the East win.
“It was awesome,” De La Torre said. “You’re playing some of the best people in this game, it’s impressive. You’re not just playing against an entire team where it’s a bunch of scrubs and one star; it’s all stars, literally.”
De La Torre, an All-Valley first team selection, came off the bench Saturday and scored eight points by halftime, much of it in the paint, with a couple putbacks. The 6-foot-5 post stabilized a front court with 6-foot-5 R.J. Arrambide (Donna High), who scored eight points, and 6-foot-7 De La Garza.
All throughout, they had a balanced attack, as the East came away with a 38-37 halftime lead. In all 13 players scored for the East, and 13 for the West, including Hugo De La Cruz (Los Fresnos), who had nine of the West’s points by halftime. He finished with a game-high 16 points, including two 3-pointers, a putback and an up-and-under layup.
“It was exciting,” said the junior, who was an All-Valley first team selection. “I felt like I did pretty good. I tell myself every game to not be scared and just play every game with confidence.”
De La Cruz was one of two double-figure scorers for the West. Teammate Michael Vasquez (Brownsville Lopez) had 11 points on Saturday, including a steal off the West’s Michael Vasquez (Hidalgo) where he picked him off around the 3-point arc and darted toward the basket.
There were a few ambitious moments where players tried to excite the crowd, such as when Ruiz attacked the basket and wrapped a pass behind his back to Leo Salazar (Mission Veterans), who missed the layup. And another where De La Torre went up for a one-handed jam, which bounced off the rim.
Isaiah Martinez (Port Isabel) had eight points for the East. Jimmy Morton (Harlingen South) had seven. And Justice Free (Weslaco High), Leo Lara (Santa Rosa) and Ed Messbarger (Brownsville Hanna) chipped in with six apiece.
Espinoza had eight points for the West, and teammate Aurelio Gonzalez (Edcouch-Elsa) added seven.
“It was fun,” De La Torre said. “Just playing with some friends, from rivals to teammates, it was really fun.”
In the girls’ All-Valley Showcase game at State Farm Arena, the East was in control the whole way, led by Sam Quilantan (Harlingen High) and Kelcie Swink (Port Isabel), who poured in a game-high-tying 8 points apiece, to power the designated home team to a 72-58 victory over the West.
Both teams had balanced production throughout, with 13 different players scoring for the East and 14 others for the West. The East opened a 34-22 lead right before intermission when Taylor Cano (Brownsville Hanna) scored on a layup underneath. Summer Vento (Mercedes) countered right back before the buzzer sounded, scoring her only basket of the game to trim it to 34-24.
Michelle Marquez (Weslaco East) did her part to rally the West back, scoring a team-high seven points. Teammates Belle Palacios (PSJA North), Jayla Santa Maria (Edinburg High) and Ashley Smith (Mission Veterans) each chipped in with six apiece.
But the East girls put together an 8-0 run that stretch the lead 57-37 following a Jazz Muniz (Weslaco High) putback that helped put the game away.
Afterward, Edinburg Economedes’ Emily Suarez won the girls 3-point shootout, burying eight attempts (out of 16) from behind the arc.
Brownsville Lopez’s Michael Lopez won the boys shootout, hitting nine 3s. He needed to hit only three to beat Edinburg Vela’s Hector Ruiz, who sank two in the second round after making eight in the first to tie Lopez.
That carried over into the boys’ showcase, where Ruiz drilled three 3-pointers, including one from NBA/D-League range.