Hidalgo executes down the stretch to hold off St. Joseph

BROWNSVILLE - The Hidalgo Pirates made the big plays down the stretch Tuesday night as they held off a scrappy St. Joseph Bloodhounds team 61-54.

"Our seniors stepped up," Hidalgo coach Gus Sanchez said. "We had to make some play, get some rebounds, make some free throws and they did, so my hat's off to them because they finished the game."

Holding a four-point lead with a little less than a minute left in the game, the Pirates' Martin Sanchez (11 points) went to the line to sink three free throws and Javier Paez picked off a pass to seal the game.

Paez intercepted the pass with just 17 seconds left and was fouled on his way to the basket, sending him to the stripe, where he calmly sunk both shots to complete the scoring.

Sanchez knew coming into the game that St. Joseph would be a tough opponent, as the Pirates were facing them for the second time this season.

While the game proved to be a struggle, it didn't always appear that way.

The teams played to an 8-8 tie at the end of the first quarter, but Hidalgo used its tenacious defense to build a lead in the second quarter, taking advantage of offensive rebounds and forcing turnovers on its way to a 23-14 halftime lead.

The Bloodhounds jumped out and grabbed a hold of the lead during the third quarter, opening the frame on a 12-1 run sparked by the play of two seniors, Nico Cardenas (12 points) and Ian Buenrostro (5 points). Cardenas and Buenrostro combined for 10 of the 12 points as the Bloodhounds swung the momentum back in their favor.

When asked why his team came out of the half sputtering, Sanchez credited the team's struggles to the stellar play of the St. Joseph defense.

As Hidalgo's offense struggled, Eduardo Pruneda stepped up for the Pirates, hitting four-of-five 3-point attempts in the quarter and helping his team regain the lead at 43-34 by the time it ended.

The fourth quarter began much the same as the third as the Bloodhounds fought their way back into the game on a 7-2 run, with Mario Sacramento tallying five of the points.

As the quarter progressed the Bloodhounds came close to completing the comeback, but they couldn't overcome the clutch play of the Pirates.

Despite the loss, St. Joseph coach Josue Flores was proud of his team for playing the way it did, finding something for which it had been searching all year.

"We played with lots of gumption," Flores said. "We talked all week about having gumption, having some heart. We played with a lot of confidence, but Hidalgo is just a great ballclub and they got one on us, but we are getting better."