You missed it if you left for a bathroom break.
The Durango High School boys basketball team ripped off a 19-5 run in the second half to leave Fruita Monument in the dust Friday, 51-27 at DHS.
DHS junior Lucas Baken punctuated the spirt with two 3-pointers from the left corner right in front of the Demons’ Red Sea student section.
“That was so awesome. It was like the best feeling ever,” said Baken, son of Dante and Jessica Baken. “It was like a huge wave there were so many people in the crowd. It got us all fired up.”
Baken finished with a team-high 14 points on the strength of 4-of-7 3-pointers.
Most of his second-half 3s and Durango’s increase in offensive production resulted from crisper offensive execution after halftime.
“Coach told us our offense needs to spread out and we just need to start attacking and stop being all perimeter,” said DHS senior Nate Atencio, son of Joanna and Raymond Atencio.
Atencio finished with three assists to lead DHS (9-11, 4-5 Southwestern League).
The Demons defense stayed consistent throughout the game, holding Fruita Monument (4-16, 3-4 SWL) to single-digit points in all four quarters.
“Our defense made the difference and keeping them off the boards,” DHS assistant coach Viki Thyfault said. “They had a few too many offensive rebounds in the first half.”
DHS ended the first half leading 20-14.
Durango’s crowd started the game in silence then erupted when the Demons scored their 10th point. It’s called a “silent night” game and was started by Taylor University.
“It was crazy. Our school did perfect,” Atencio said. “It got really loud on the 10th point. I didn’t think it was going to work, but it did.”
The win snapped a five-game losing streak for DHS. All five of the losses came on the road in SWL play.
“There’s a lot of parity in our league. It’s tough to go play over the hill over and over again,” Thyfault said. “Coming back and getting the rhythm back at home, that breath of fresh air back at home with our crowd, sleeping in our own beds is huge.”
There’s one big SWL game left on Durango’s regular-season schedule – at noon Saturday against Montrose. DHS could clinch at least a tie for second place in the SWL with a win over the Indians.
“Montrose and us have become the 4A rivals within our league. Cortez is always the crosstown rival, but Montrose is the team that competes in all sports,” Thyfault said. “Basketball’s no exception. It’s a big game going into the next game in that we’re going into the league tournament and how you’re seeded.
kgrabwski@durangoherald.com
