Monday, December 27, 2010

Riverside Girls Holiday Basketball Tournament


Our Lady Rangers will be hosting the YISD Holiday Basketball Tournament this Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday (Dec. 28-30, 2010) at Riverside High School and Riverside Middle.

Seven out of the nine teams that will be playing in the tourney are currently ranked in the El Paso Times Top Ten. This will be a great tourney with some of the best talent in the city.

Here is the Schedule for day one. Would love to hear your predictions and comments. Please feel free to post on this blog.

I will be updating game scores through this blog and also through twitter: @ssolis3

If you want to watch some great hoops action take a drive on over to Riverside and spend your day with us.

*Riverside High School is Located on 301 Midway.

Teams Participating in the Tourney:

Irvin (12-4) Ranked #6*

Ysleta (6-11)

Eastwood (10-7) Ranked #10*

Franklin (15-2) Ranked #2 *

Bel Ai
r (9-6) Ranked #7*

Horizon (14-2) Ranked #5*

El Dorado
(3-7)

Chapin (12-3) Ranked #4*

Riverside (11-7) Ranked #8*

(* indicates recent El Paso Times Ranking)


Tuesday Schedule (December 28)


Game 1- Irvin vs Ysleta 10:00 am Riverside High

Game 2- Franklin vs Bel Air 11:30 am Riverside High

Game 3- Eastwood vs Irvin 1:00pm Riverside High

Game 4- Riverside vs El Dorado 1:00pm Riverside Middle

Game 5- Horizon vs Franklin 2:30 pm Riverside High

Game 6- Ysleta vs Eastwood 4:00pm Riverside High

Game 7- El Dorado vs Chapin 4:00 pm Riverside Middle

Game 8- Bel Air vs Horizon 5:30 pm Riverside High

Game 9- Chapin vs Riverside 7:00 pm Riverside High

Friday, December 24, 2010

Bank of The West Don Haskins Invitational


Making plans to take Stevo and Jazz to watch UTEP men take on Air Force and WNM in the Bank of the West Don Haskins Invitational Tournament on December 28th and 29th.

This will be the Miners' first game after losing to BYU last Thursday night.

Sam Houston will round out the tournament field and will meet UTEP on January 2.






A brief stat sheet on each team playing in the tourney:


Current Record: 3-7

Common opponent with UTEP (NMSU) Lost 95-69

Conference: Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference

Leading Scorers: T.J. Riley 14.2 pts per game

Chad Carter 13.7 pts per game

El Paso Player on Roster: Everett Duis (EL Dorado High School)




Current Record: 7-3

Common Opponent with UTEP (Ark. Pine-Bluff) won 63-52

Conference: Mountain West Conference

Players To Watch: Derek Brooks; Michael Lyons; Evan Washington

Sam Houston State Bearkats

Current Record: 6-4

Lost twice to Houston this season: 71-75 (ot) and 73-75

Conference: Southland Conference

Players To Watch: Josten Crow and Gilberto Clavell



Tuesday Schedule:

Utep vs Western New Mexico 7pm

Air Force vs Sam Houston State 9pm


Wednesday Schedule:

Western New Mexico vs Sam Houston State 5:30pm

UTEP vs Air Force 7:30 pm







El Paso Times Top Ten Basketball Rankings

Here are the current rankings for the Boys' and Girls' Basketball teams according to the El Paso Times.

The Riverside teams have had a good couple of weeks heading into the holiday break. The boys' team got a big win over Parkland recently and the girls' have won 4 straight. Both teams play in tournaments next week.




(Rankings posted on Dec. 23)

Boys' Top Ten

1. Franklin 12-4
2. Montwood 11-2
3. Coronado 11-2
4. Austin 11-2
5. Eastwood 15-5
6. Riverside 9-5
7. Parkland 9-5
8. Bowie 9-3
9. Burges 9-3
10. Americas 12-5



















Girls' Top Ten
1. Burges 16-1
2. Franklin 15-2
3. Coronado 15-2
4. Chapin 12-3
5. Horizon 14-2
6. Irvin 12-4
7. Bel Air 9-6
8. Riverside 11-7
9. Canutillo 13-5
10. Eastwood 10-7

Crazy Free Throw

Tuesday, December 21, 2010

UTEP vs Stephen F Austin

The Utep Men got a big win last night vs. the Stephen F Austin Lumberjacks 61-52. The Lumberjacks slowed the Miners down all night and UTEP just never seemed to be able to get on track. Missed layups, jump shots, and free throws kept the Lumberjacks in the game the whole night.

The Miners woke up (just a little) after the half and finally pulled away from SFA. Utep has got to play a lot better on both ends of the floor if they are going to knock off the #24 ranked BYU Cougars on Thursday.


The Miner alumni pep band had fun all night heckling the female referee during the women's game. The referee had to endure calls of "SHARON" all night long because she looked a little like the wife of Ozzy Osbourne.


Just a thought: The people in charge of the half-time entertainment should have the ball boy playing against other top mascots in a game of one one one during half-time. The kid made halftime entertaining with his nice skills against Paydirt. The Miners might want to start recruiting this kid now.




















Don Haskins Center













Paydirt Pete in the Holiday Spirit







Upcoming Game for the men:


BYU Cougars (ranked #23 in nation)


7pm

Provo, Utah


Listen to the game on KOFX 92.3 FM

Utep Women's Basketball vs New Mexico

I headed over to the Don Haskins center last night to catch both the men and womens' basketball teams in action as part of a double header. The women were playing New Mexico and the men took on the Stephen F Austin Lumberjacks.

The ladies got off to a quick start by hitting some early 3's and taking advantage of a New Mexico club that was cold on both ends of the floor. The Miners soon saw their big lead disappear and held off a big rally by the Lobos to win at the buzzer.




Gloria Brown was dominant in the paint and she seemed unstoppable at times. Brown hit the game winning layup at the buzzer and finally put the Lobos away for good. I have seen Brown in a few games this year and really like her overall game. She is a big body with a nice game around the basket.

I thought UTEP made way too many mistakes down the stretch that probably should have cost them the game. To their credit the ladies battled through and captured a big game at home.


I really like the way this team gets after it and really think it is a shame that more El Pasoans don't go out to support the team. If you get a chance to make a women's game this year you won't leave home disappointed. These ladies have a great chance to make some waves in the Conference.

Thursday, December 16, 2010

EL Paso Times Top Ten Rankings Basketball

Here are the recent top ten rankings for the Boys and Girls according to the El Paso Times.


December 16,2010

Boys:
1. Franklin 11-4
2. Montwood 10-2
3. Eastwood 12-4
4. Parkland 9-4
5. Coronado 10-2
6. Austin 10-2
7. Bowie 8-3
8. Americas 9-3
9. Burges 8-3
10. Riverside 8-5

Girls:
1. Burges 15-1
2. Franklin 14-2
3. Coronado 14-2
4. Chapin 10-3
5. Horizon 13-2
6. Irvin 11-4
7. Bel Air 8-6
8. Canutillo 13-2
9. Eastwood 10-6
10. Riverside 9-7

19th Annual Senior All-Star Football Classic

The Senior Football classic will kickoff this Saturday afternoon in the Sun Bowl at 1 p.m.

The Riverside Rangers have three players who made the East roster this year.

#7 Carlos Almanza was a standout receiver for us this year who made huge catches in big games.

#76 Sebastian Perez will help open the holes on the offensive line for the talented East running backs.

On the defensive side of the ball the Rangers will be represented by defensive back Eric Rodriguez.

These guys busted their tails for us all year and deserve this great opportunity to play in the Sun Bowl at the All-Star Classic. Congratulations and good luck to all the players and coaches participating in the game on Saturday.

All-Star Info:

Time: 1p.m. Saturday

Location: Sun Bowl Stadium

Radio: KROD AM-600

Tickets Prices: $6 at all area high schools and at First National Bank Branches; $8 in game day at the stadium.

Website: allstarfootballclassic.com

New Mexico Bowl 2010

Utep takes on old rival BYU in the New Mexico Bowl on Saturday and I am scrambling to see if I can make it up there to catch Buckram and Vittatoe in their last game in Miner Orange.

We have been following the Miners as a family ever since we moved to El Paso and are happy to see them playing in a Bowl game.

The Bowl won't be a sellout by a long shot but Miner fans should try to make the game to support the team if the have the opportunity. The Miner Rush has been doing a great job in covering the Bowl game and the official New Mexico Bowl website has great info about the game and the events. The Mine Shaft is another blog that is covering the Miners as they prepare for the Saturday afternoon kickoff.

I know alot of fans are upset that UTEP is even playing in a Bowl with a 6-6 record but I tend to look at the glass as being half full instead of half empty. I am sure plenty of other schools would love to be playing in a Bowl this time of year. It is a great experience for the players and fans and a reward for all the hard work they have put in throughout the year. Here's hoping that the Miners get a big win in New Mexico and end the year holding up the Clay Pot.

Would like to hear your predictions for the game or comments.

Friday, December 10, 2010

High School Basketball Week 2 District Play

The Lady Rangers took care of the San Elizario Eagles last Tuesday night to open up District 2-4a play. Our girls played tough and never let the Eagles get into a rhythm on offense. Our Jv and Freshmen teams lost both of their games but continued to show improvement. San Elizario has a nice JV team that should help them on the Varsity level next year.

The Del Valle girls team also opened up the season with a win over the Ysleta Indians. Tonight the schedule includes only one District game that pits Parkland vs Canutillo.


Tonight's Schedule (Girls):
*Parkland vs Canutillo
Clint vs. Riverside
Hanks vs. Horizon
*Burges at Andress
*Irvin at Chapin
Austin at Gadsden

*denotes a district game.

Scores from Tuesday's Games 12/07/10 (Girls):
Frankling 65 Bel Air 63
Americas 37 Hanks 31
Coronado 59 Socorro 28
Horizon 70 Clint 35
Irvin 67 Mt. View 19
Burges 49 Eastwood 48
Austin 47 El Paso 45
Canutillo 36 Andress 31
Bowie 55 Jeff 48
Del Valle 52 Ysleta 34


This Week's El Paso Time's Top Ten: (Girls)
1. Burges 13-1
2. Franklin 12-2
3. Coronado 12-2
4. Chapin 9-3
5. Irvin 10-3
6. Horizon 11-2
7. Bel Air 7-5
8. Canutillo 11-4
9. Eastwood 9-5
10. Andress 9-5