By MARIO AGUIRRE | STAFF WRITER
EDINBURG — For two weeks, Edinburg Vela carried with it the disappointment of picking up its first loss of the year to a Valley school.
So in taking the court Friday, the SaberCats felt added incentive to win, and win convincingly, on top of the urgency surrounding their District 31-5A opener. Three players scored 20 or more points, including Ryan Garza, who had 29, and Vela cruised past Sharyland Pioneer 100-69 to improve to 19-2.
The SaberCats hadn’t lost consecutive games since the 2013-14 season, when they fell to Edinburg North and Sharyland High. They avoided that Friday, after losing to McAllen Rowe 66-65 on Dec. 22, with all-around efforts from Hector Ruiz, who had 22 points, and Alec De La Cruz’s 20 points.
“The loss left a bad taste in our mouths, and we wanted to leave an impression that we still have what it takes to win this season,” De La Cruz said. “We just didn’t have that fire in us (the previous game). We weren’t hungry anymore. But now we’re back on track.”
Though Vela appeared well on its way to a 100-point night after leading 36-16 at the end of the opening quarter, it scored just 14 points in the ensuing frame.
Jordan Wilson’s driving layup with 4:28 to play in the first half cut the Sharyland Pioneer deficit 36-29, before the SaberCats scored their first points of the quarter with 4:12 left in the half.
Vela outscored Pioneer 33-14 in the third quarter, and it scored its 99th and 100th points when reserve Noah Sekinger scored with 25 seconds to play. It marked the first time that Vela reached the 100-point mark this season.
“I think it helped that we lost the last game,” Vela coach Lalo Rios said. “I think it really motivated us. It opened our eyes a bit. It lit a fire we hadn’t seen in awhile.
“We don’t like losing, but we’ll take the losses that come with a loss.”
For the SaberCats, that meant hitting their shots, particularly free throws. On Friday, they hit 9 of 10, with Garza going 8-for-8 from the line to go with three 3-pointers.
Vela was relentless with its full-court press, substituting five players at a time, and making it difficult for the Diamondbacks to get in any type of offensive rhythm.
They had five different scorers during the second quarter when they scored 22 points, led by Chris Melendez, who scored all nine of his points during that frame to cut it 50-38 at halftime.
“They’re a good team,” Pioneer coach Rene Gonzalez said. “Got to prepare ourselves next time.
He added: “They kept fighting, that’s the main thing. I just told them, ‘Little by little, keep your composure. We’re going to be fine.’ But they’re a good team.”