Abraham Lincoln’s 71-70 how-did-they-do-that? victory over Aurora Central on Saturday may be the one that sparks Colorado’s defending Class 4A champion for the balance of the season. But first the Lancers will require a little time to let it digest.
“How did you like that?” Lancers coach Vince Valdez said. “How’d that happen?”
It was a head-scratcher. The Lancers, who moved to 8-5, persevered through a rash of turnovers, missed shots and gambling on defense. They also trailed by as many as 14 points, 12 in the fourth quarter.
However, senior Francisco Cruz, shut out early, erupted for 19 of his game-high 34 points in the fourth quarter, including the winning free throws with seven seconds to play.
“I still think he’s getting his legs back from the break, but they had better be there,” Valdez said. “They’ve got to be there.”
Said Cruz: “We worked hard. We played defense, and we were able to come back.”
It had been all Aurora Central for more than 24 minutes. The 5A Trojans’ superior speed, quickness and rebounding kept the Lancers chasing, and Caston Mabin, Kojo Mensah, Chris Kelly and Brock Veasley, despite turnover and shot-selection issues of their own, appeared to be OK.
However, the Lancers kept forcing the play, their press started to pay dividends and they kept getting to the free-throw line. They made 9-of-13 over the final six minutes, and the Trojans’ ball-handling problems mounted.
Cruz, despite only six points at halftime, scored nearly every time he touched the ball in the final minutes and received help from Sal Torres and Dre Calloway. Torres contributed offensive rebounds and nabbed loose balls and steals by the bunch, and kept finding Cruz off steals and feeds.
Even late, the Trojans opted to attack as opposed to protecting.
“We took a jumper when we should have (driven) a couple times,” Trojans coach Ian Calvert said. “I have to let my kids stay aggressive. That’s why we were winning.”
Aurora Central 12 20 22 16 — 70
Abraham Lincoln 6 12 24 29 — 71
Aurora Central — Bonds 0 0-0 0, Veasley 4 2-2 10, Mabin 10 1-3 22, Kelly 3 3-8 9, Goyer 2 0-0 4, Abrams 1 0-0 2, Venable 4 0-0 10, Mensah 5 2-2 13, Lopez 0 0-0 0. Totals 29 8-15 70.
Abraham Lincoln — Rodriguez 0 0-0 0, Cruz 11 8-11 34, Ngyuen 0 0-0 0, Torres 4 5-5 13, Williams 4 0-2 8, Calloway 5 2-8 12, LeRoy 1 0-0 2, Carrasco 1 0-0 2, Espinoza 0 0-0 0. Totals 26 15-27 71.
3-point goals — Venable 2, Mabin, Mensah; Cruz 4.
Neil H. Devlin: 303-954-1714 or ndevlin@denverpost.com
