SANTA ROSA — The Santa Rosa Warriors call themselves “dawgs” — not dogs, the animal — a “dawg,” a mentally tough athlete that can handle tough situations and embraces vigorous practices.
That “dawg” was on display at practice Wednesday night as the Warriors prepared for an 8 p.m. showdown tonight at home against the Rio Hondo Bobcats.
The Warriors, 9-0 in District 32-3A, hustled during drills with Phil Collins’ “In the Air Tonight” blaring in the background. Santa Rosa is not taking it easy, a sign of respect for its upcoming opponent, Rio Hondo, and the rest of the district.
“They respond well to us getting after them,” said Rene Duque, Santa Rosa’s second-year head coach. “We respect Rio Hondo, last season they went three deep. They are experienced and well-coached. We are excited for the opportunity.”
Tonight, the Warriors play at home for the first time during the new year. With a win, the Warriors move two games up against Rio Hondo in the district title race.
“It will be pretty good,” Santa Rosa point guard Bryan Rojas said. “But, there are still some tough teams we have to play. So, we still have to come out and play ball, we can’t let up.”
After Rio Hondo, the Warriors face Lyford (fourth place in the district) then Progreso (third place). It is a revamped District 32-3A with the additions of Lyford, Weslaco IDEA Pike and Rio Hondo.
Santa Rosa is averaging 76 points per game in district. Senior Felipe Alaniz leads the team in scoring with 14 ppg. Alaniz, a power forward, picks up a lot of second-chance buckets, Duque said.
“It pushes me, it pushes all of the guys, too,” Alaniz said. “They all want to score just as bad as I do.”
Defensively, the Warriors are allowing 46 ppg in their nine district games this season. Anchoring the defense is Adrian Zamora a 6-foot-3 big man who is averaging four blocks a game.
“I know I have to step up for the team,” said Zamora, a senior captain. “Every time I get a big block, everyone gets hyped. It feels good to be able to do that.”
Santa Rosa is also injury-free for the first time all year, Duque said. The Warriors are on a 10-game winning streak that extends to a non-district victory over Brownsville Veterans Memorial, a potential playoff team out of District 32-5A.
“We are peaking right now,” Rojas said. “Little by little, we are putting the pieces together and we are looking solid.”