For an Abraham Lincoln team struggling of late with the little things, taking out the biggest piece of their offense against Montbello on Thursday was a recipe for disaster.
Here’s to cooking by the seat of your pants.
Francisco Cruz scored a career-high 27 points and pulled down 14 rebounds filling in for injured standout Jorge Gutierrez (knee), while seldom-used center Eric Carrasco hit two crucial free throws and grabbed two rebounds in the dying seconds of the Lancers’ 75-69 DPL victory.
“I knew I had to box out and go for it all,” Cruz said through a translator. “It feels great.”
The Lancers (10-6, 2-0 DPL), ranked No. 6 in The Denver Post/9News Class 4A poll, trailed by seven early in the fourth quarter but stormed back, finishing the game with a 16-3 run and taking the lead for good on Carrasco’s inside basket with 32 seconds left.
“I was just happy to be there,” said Carrasco, a 6-foot-8 sophomore, who got more minutes than usual with starter Erick Preciado in foul trouble.
The Warriors, ranked No. 5 in 5A, trailed 72-69 but got off two shots and missed two free throws with six seconds left before the Lancers sealed it with three free throws from Ruot Pal – one coming off a technical foul assessed to Warriors coach David Carey.
Pal had 14 points and eight rebounds and Kadeem Thomas added 24 points as the Lancers won their third straight and improved to 7-5 this season against 5A foes.
“It really is a reflection of our unity right now,” Lancers coach Vince Valdez said. “We believe that we are starting to play at a higher level than we were, regardless of who we have on the floor.”
In a game with 10 lead changes, Montbello (14-3, 1-1) was poised to pull away when Anthony Porch’s alley-oop dunk put the visitors up 66-59 with a little more than four minutes remaining. But the Warriors, who came in riding a six-game winning streak, made just one basket the rest of the game despite wide-open looks and multiple chances in close.
Porch led the Warriors with 20 points before fouling out. Quincy Hairston added 15 points and Nate Nelson finished with 13.
Valdez said he was being cautious with Gutierrez, who hyperextended his knee in practice Wednesday.
Montbello 14 16 28 11 – 69
Abraham Lincoln 16 12 25 22 – 75
Montbello – Littlejohn 2 3-5 7, Hairston 5 4-5 15, Porch 7 4-4 20, Nelson 4 3-4 13, Baker 3 0-0 6, Jordan 1 2-2 4, Soaporu 0 0-0 0, Shead 1 0-0 2, McDonald 1 0-2 2. Totals 24 16-22 69.
Abraham Lincoln – Cruz 9 6-7 27, Thomas 8 5-6 24, Torres 2 0-2 4, Pal 4 6-8 14, Preciado 0 0-0 0, Carrasco 2 2-4 6, Rodriguez 0 0-0 0. Totals 25 19-27 75.
3-pt. goals – Nelson 2, Porch 2, Hairston; Cruz 3, Thomas 3. Total fouls – Monbello 20, Abraham Lincoln 19. Fouled out – Porch; Torres. Technicals – Montbello (delay of game), Montbello coach David Carey; Rodriguez.
