CORPUS CHRISTI — La Joya High went down swinging 72-62 in its Class 6A area round playoff matchup against San Antonio Harlan on Wednesday at Corpus Christi Veterans High School.
“We battled throughout the whole game, we just came up short. We went up against a tough team defensively and they did a good job getting us out of our stuff, so credit to them,” La Joya head coach Eric Montalvo said.
Harlan (16-6, 9-3) used its size advantage and length on the defensive end of the floor to disrupt the Coyotes’ fast-paced offense during the first half.
La Joya (22-5, 13-2), which was playing in its first area round postseason game in over 15 years, never backed down. The Coyotes scratched and clawed their way to outscore Harlan 23-15 over the final eight minutes.
The senior core of JC Barrientos, Bernie Vera and Cesar Villarreal carried the Coyotes against the Hawks. Barrientos was lights-out from deep, as he finished with a game-high 18 points with six made 3-pointers. Villarreal poured in 16 points of his own, while also pulling down eight rebounds and dishing out four assists. Vera, La Joya’s big man, nearly double-doubled with 14 points, nine boards, one steal and one block. Sophomore Ethan Moya finished with 10 points, four rebounds and four assists.
The same fight they showed against Harlan is what carried the Coyotes to winning the program’s first district championship in 16 years, and its first bi-district playoff win in 23 years.
“Everyday in practice we talked about leaving their mark, even at halftime we talked about it and they competed to the end,” Montalvo said. “They came out here and battled and it didn’t matter what the result was.”
San Antonio Harlan was led by 18 points from Dre Spriggs and 14 points from Caleb Mccrackin, a 6-foot-9 center.
Although their season is over, the 2020-21 team helped put La Joya Coyotes basketball back on the map in a major way. They cut down two nets in the process and earned a spot on the boys basketball banner hanging inside the La Joya High School.
“It’s a great success, a history-making year and that’s all we can ask for as coaches. We got a group of kids that set goals and worked hard to accomplish them,” Montalvo said.
San Antonio Harlan moves on to the regional quarterfinals where it will face the winner of today’s second-round game between Weslaco High and San Antonio Warren.
