By MARIO AGUIRRE | STAFF WRITER
EDINBURG — Trying to loosen his players, Edinburg Vela coach Lalo Rios told his players to treat Tuesday’s game against Sharyland High like any other on its schedule — even if privately he didn’t believe that was the case.
The emotion he displayed on the bench throughout the night showed otherwise. It wasn’t just another one of the SaberCats’ 12 district games. It was an opportunity, in fact, for Vela to make a statement. And it did that by pulling out a 62-58 win at home, snapping Sharyland’s 16-game winning streak dating back to Dec. 5.
More importantly, Vela (21-5, 5-0) secured its second consecutive win against the top two teams in District 31-5A — widely believed to be the most competitive in the Valley — after beating Mission Veterans on Friday.
“The magnitude of the game had a lot to do with (the way players responded),” said Rios, whose team took sole possession of first place in district with the victory. “Definitely, it helps our confidence. We still have a long way to go. The kids understand that. But every game is huge, and this was a good win for our kids.”
Hector Ruiz (team-high 25 points), Ryan Garza (17) and Alec De La Cruz (14) carried the SaberCats, combining for 56 of the team’s 62 points.
Ruiz, in particular, came up big, drilling five 3-pointers.
He scored underneath the hoop off an assist from Garza to give Vela a 60-55 lead with 2:07 to play. Later, they ran the same play, this time with Ruiz as a distributor to De La Garza.
“Guys came out with a lot of confident today,” Ruiz said. “Coach said just to play more relaxed, to not really think about it.
“(This win now) boosts our confidence up a lot. We know we have to step it up.”
Vela exerted a lot of energy trying to contain Patrick De La Torre, who scored a game-high 26 points. De La Torre, a 6-foot-5 post, was relentless in the paint, getting plenty of offensive boards.
He played a pivotal role in helping Sharyland stay in the game, setting the tone in the third quarter when the Rattlers took their first lead.
De La Torre got a putback to bring the deficit to within 39-34. After a scoop underneath the basket from Sean Tucker (9 points) and a triple, Andres Cantu came away with a steal, finding Joshua Ruiz (8 points) for a corner 3 to tie it at 41.
The next time down, Ruiz drilled another from behind the arc.
Vela pulled ahead, though, when Garza fed Ruiz for a 3 for a 48-46 edge with 2 minutes left in the third quarter. Garza then stole the ensuing inbounds pass underneath the hoop, tossing in a bucket.
It was one of a series of plays that begin swinging momentum in the SaberCats’ favor.
“Everyone that played did something positive, and we preach that,” Rios said. “I looked down the bench and everyone who stepped in did something positive. Yeah, we had individual guys who played well, but I tell the guys we win as a team and lose as a team, and we got this one as a team tonight.”
Defensively, the SaberCats are still hoping to get better. But Vela had plenty of encouraging signs, especially in nabbing 10 steals. Garza finished with six steals, including three during the opening quarter that led to six points in transition.
De La Torre, for his part, took charges, swatted a couple of shots and did his best to man the paint.
“Patrick, he’s tough,” Ruiz said. “We just tried to push him around. He’s just too tough. Thank God we got this win.”
Vela also benefitted from Jose De La Garza getting into foul trouble. The 6-foot-7 senior, who is one of three players in the Valley to average a double-double in points and rebounds, struggled to get in a rhythm, picking up a couple fouls early and then again in the third quarter. He scored 4 points before fouling out.
“It kind of tied his hands a little bit,” Sharyland coach David Keith said. “But you’ve got to give credit to Vela. They’re fast. They’re good shooters.”
He added: “To get through this the way we did and for it to be a battle of the way it was, I’m proud of my guys. We get to see (Vela) again at our place, and my guys are pumped about that. Our entire emphasis now is on (Mission) Veterans on Friday.”