PHARR — The Edinburg Vela SaberCats didn’t surrender a point until under the four-minute mark of the first quarter of its District 31-5A game against PSJA North and rode that defensive effort en route to a 68-54 win against the Raiders on Thursday at PSJA North High School.
Edinburg Vela (13-11 overall) remains unbeaten in district at 4-0, while PSJA North (11-9 overall) drops to 2-2 in 31-5A competition.
“We talked about it before the game: we needed to come out with a good start by setting the tone defensively and imposing our will. They’re a good team, scrappy and kept us on our heels the whole game,” Vela head coach Lucio Rodriguez said.
While the SaberCats’ defense was stingy throughout, their offense was the opposite with eight different players recording first half points. Edinburg Vela’s ball movement led to open shots inside the paint and from beyond the arc, resulting in a 37-20 halftime lead.
JP Olivarez led the SaberCats with 13 points while Aiden Lopez added 12. Sam Sepulveda chipped in with nine and Axel Garza, Ozzy Garza and Diego Salinas scored eight points apiece. Olivarez’s drive-and-dish ability created looks around the basket for the SaberCats, which was key in sustaining their double-digit lead against the Raiders from the first quarter through the final buzzer.
“I think some of our best offense comes from our defense when we get those transition points and push the ball,” Olivarez said. “I just put a lot of trust in my guys and always try to look for them. Being a point guard, I’m a pass-first type of guy, so I look for them and then score after, but really and truly, it’s all the guys. Give them the ball and they’re going to make it.”
Gianni Beltran finished with a game-high 30 points for PSJA North with 18 coming during the second half. The SaberCats made operating on offense difficult for Beltran, but he battled through the adversity to finish nearly nine points above his 21.2 per game average thanks to some tough finishes inside. Mason Lopez added 12 for the Raiders.
“I think our kids played hard. That’s a very good Vela team but I think our kids played hard all the way to the end,” PSJA North head coach Angel Alonzo said. “It’s a tough district, so we just have to keep working.”
PSJA North will look to bounce back against Sharyland High at 2:30 p.m. Friday, Dec. 30.
Edinburg Vela returns to action after the Christmas break with two big games against McAllen High at 1:30 p.m. Friday, Dec. 30, and Sharyland Pioneer at 7:30 p.m. Tuesday, Jan. 3.
“We want to keep getting better. We feel like we still have some areas to improve on, so those will be some games against battle-tested teams with great coaches and we’re looking forward to going against them,” Rodriguez said.