BY SAUL BERRIOS-THOMAS | THE MONITOR
EDINBURG — Edinburg Vela senior Trey Chavana remembers when junior center Noah Sekinger was a freshman.
“He could barely dribble the ball,” Chavana said of Sekinger.
Sekinger has developed into a player who on Friday night dominated in a 55-42 win for Vela over Edinburg High on the Bobcats’ home floor.
“This one felt really good,” Sekinger said. “I think we all knew going into the game. We were really confident. We just felt the difference. Something in the air felt different tonight. We knew what we had to do to come out with this win, and everybody executed.”
Sekinger was matched up with one of the best big men in the Valley: Edinburg High senior Jesus Cantu. Cantu came into the game closing in on averaging a double-double, with 12.8 points and 9.0 rebounds per game. Sekinger brought slightly more scoring (14.4) and just a hair less rebounding (8.9).
“It’s usually a good battle every time Jesus and I go at it,” Sekinger said after their third career meeting. “They were letting us play a lot. So, there were a couple in there where he fouled me, but no matter how many times you get blocked, you have to keep going up strong every time. You can’t shy away from the challenge, because the moment you do is when someone else comes and gets you.”
The battle was as intense as promised.
Sekinger had 10 points on the night, and Cantu netted 9. The two played to nearly a push on offense, they were about even on the rebounding front, and they were level on defense. Both players effectively protected the rim, whether it was with thunderous blocks or altering shots just enough to get offensive players off balance.
Sekinger found the difference-maker during the second quarter.
“I knew once I started getting it in the post more, they were either going to foul me or double down, which they were doing a lot of,” Sekinger said. “So I was like, ‘I think it’s time to start getting my teammates open. If I can give up a bad shot for a great shot somewhere else — perfect, that’s what we want.”
When the first quarter ended, EHS was up 13-10. Sekinger saw his shooters were open thanks to sagging defenders, and he was able to deliver several precision passes out to the perimeter. During the second quarter alone, junior guard Bobby Espericueta had two 3s and Chavana added a third.
“Those passes were amazing,” Espericueta said. “Jesus was playing good defense on him, and he’s a bigger guy. But, Noah did a great job finding his teammates.”
Vela gained the lead, heading into the locker room for halftime up 25-23.
“We saw that some of the things defensively were working in the first half. We just needed to clean up a few things, so that they would be more effective,” Vela coach David Keith said. “We made a few adjustments on personnel, depending on where we were at. We just did what any coach would do at halftime: make an adjustment, and the guys were able to understand what we were doing, come out and execute on the floor.”
The second half opened up even more passing lanes for Sekinger and the rest of the SaberCats. They used their ball movement and quick passing to unleash a barrage of 3-pointers.
“Oh yeah, man, we hit some big shots in the second half. That kind of opened it up for us,” Keith said. “We started hustling a little more, getting rebounds to try to get some possessions.”
In all, the SaberCats hit 10 shots from beyond the arc, compared to just two for the Bobcats — one in each half from junior forward Antoine Woodard, who finished with 20 points.
Woodard gave his all trying to will the Bobcats back into the game. He even suffered a cut on his chin, which forced him to switch his jersey. During the fourth quarter, Woodard scored eight of the Bobcats’ 10 points, but his three misses from the free-throw line hurt, and the lack of scoring from anyone else was the killing blow.
“He’s a heck of a ball player,” Keith said. “He’s extremely athletic, and that left-right hand switch is sneaky stuff. He’s a good player.”
Chavana finished with five points, and his defense on Woodard helped the SaberCats hold the lead down the stretch.
“We just believe in our senior Trey,” Espericueta said. “He is experienced, and he has a big enough body to compete with (Woodard). He did his job.”
Vela gained a lot of confidence with the win. The team started slow but has been heating up through the district season.
Junior guard Josh Diaz scored 13 points for Vela, guard Nate Gomez hit a pair of 3s, and guard Austin Garza had five points before he fouled out midway through the fourth quarter.
“It feels great. It feels amazing,” Espericueta said. “They are a really highly ranked team, and they were rolling through the district undefeated. Just coming in with a better team and more confidence, everybody played their game, and we got the win. … From where we started off, losing to Econ, (to now be tied for first in the district), that’s amazing.”
Sekinger’s 10 points mark the most he has scored against Edinburg High in his career. He has come a long way from the first time Chavana saw him attempt to dribble.
“(Sekinger) was able to really read and look for the open guy,” Keith said of Sekinger’s game Friday. “We were able to get some 3s from the inside out, which is a work in progress still, but he is getting better at it.”