With the league schedule reaching its midpoint, the title races in both the boys and girls San Juan Basin League have narrowed the field down. Meanwhile, league parity has yielded some intriguing results on almost a daily basis, meaning there aren’t any nights off.
This past Thursday through Saturday proved that point, as we take a look at the SJBL action and updated standings.
Thursday, Jan. 30
Nucla 63, Mancos 35
Dove Creek 62, Durango JV 44
Friday, Jan. 31
Dolores 69, Telluride 46
Saturday, Feb. 1
Dove Creek 58, Telluride 43
Ridgway 58, Mancos 25
The Dove Creek league unbeaten run continues, as the Bulldogs traveled to the Miner Dome and pulled away in the fourth quarter to fend off the hosts. Teresa Martin’s squad opened final frame with a narrow two-point advantage, but outscored the hosts 20-7 in the last eight minutes to secure the win. The ‘Dogs (11-5, 5-0 SJBL) continue to take their leap to the 2A field in stride, as they sit at No. 13 in the CHSAA Seeding and Selection Index after the weekend’s action.
Dolores (5-11, 3-5 SJBL) posted arguably their most comprehensive performances of the season while also throttling Telluride, as the Bears continue to play better basketball with each passing week.
Nucla helped their case of hosting a potential regional round site in the 1A state tournament, improving to 12-4 while maintaining their third-place standing in the boys SJBL field. Mancos (0-16, 0-6 SJBL), meanwhile, stayed winless while dropping both of their contests this week, in spite of hanging tough through the first half with second-place Ridgway, trailing 27-19 at the break before the Demons pulled away in the second half.
Thursday, Jan. 30
Nucla 52, Mancos 18
Friday, Jan. 31
Telluride 27, Dolores 23
Saturday, Feb. 1
Dove Creek 64, Telluride 25
Ridgway 36, Mancos 33
The Bulldogs (11-4, 4-1 SJBL) stayed within a game of league-leading Nucla courtesy of their dominant win over the Miners. The Bulldogs continue to hold on to a top 16 seed in the 2A field heading into their rematch with the Mustangs this upcoming week, trying to avenge an eight-point loss from January 28.
Mancos, meanwhile, suffered a tough loss against the Demons in a back-and-forth affair between a pair of evenly matched teams in the middle of the SJBL pack. The Bluejays (4-10, 3-4 SJBL) fell into fourth place in the standings with the pair of defeats and sit No. 37 in the CHSAA Selection and Seeding Index after the weekend.
Dolores led for the vast majority of their home contest with Telluride, but the Miners found crucial buckets down the stretch to down the Bears (5-12, 3-5 SJBL), keeping Dolores outside the top four spots in the league standings.
In the week ahead, Dove Creek takes on Ouray on Tuesday before traveling to Nucla on Saturday, as the DC girls look to exact revenge from their lone league loss of the season.
Mancos travels to Telluride on Thursday before returning home to take on Ouray on Saturday. Dolores will host Monticello on Tuesday before a Friday night clash at Ouray.
