BULLDOG BASKETBALL

PICTURED: Clay Kincaid goes up over the Portales defense for a shot off the glass during the first half Tuesday at Bulldog Pit.
(Photo Courtesy Artesia Bulldog Paw Prints)

The Bulldog basketball team kicked off its three-game district home stand with another decisive win Tuesday at Bulldog Pit, defeating Portales by a final of 74-48.

As was the case last week in Lovington, the Class 4A top-ranked Runnin' 'Dogs got all they could handle from the Rams in the first half and led by just three at the break, 25-22. But before a big home crowd, the Artesia boys put on an offensive show in the third and fourth quarters to pull away for the 26-point win.

Clay Kincaid, Trent Egeland and Braylon Vega spent the early goings of the first trading baskets with Portales' big three: Carson Pfaffenberger, Jase Hightower and Joel Lujan. A pair of late jumpers from Cael Houghtaling and Egeland put the 'Dogs up 12-10 by quarter's end, and the battle would continue into the second. There, the Rams would outscore Artesia 10-4 in the first four minutes to go up 20-16 before the boys in orange shook off their scoring drought. Charlie Campbell posted a bucket and went 3-4 from the free-throw line, Vega put one off the glass, and Tootie McNeil added an offensive putback in the final moments of the half to give the Bulldogs back their lead, 25-22, at intermission.

The 'Dogs came out with renewed energy for the second half, bombarding the Rams with just shy of 30 points in the third quarter. Campbell got things going with four from the stripe and a drive to the hoop, Egeland put up a pair of baskets in the paint, and Vega turned a fast-break layup in transition into three points with the and-one. Another Vega bucket and a fade-away jumper from Houghtaling quickly turned Artesia's three-point edge into 13 points of breathing room, 42-29.

Egeland had two more from inside in the latter minutes of the quarter, and Campbell would go twice more to the line in quick succession after a double-technical call resulted in the ejection of a Ram. He hit three of the four, and the 'Dogs would end the period on a long pass from Houghtaling to Corbyn Dominguez, who put it off the glass at the buzzer to make it 54-33. The Bulldogs continued the offensive onslaught in the fourth, getting nine points -- including their lone three of the night -- from Vega, six from Kincaid, and four from Steven Williams in the final eight minutes to run away with the 74-48 victory.

Vega finished with 20 to lead all scorers on the night, followed by Campbell with 16 and Egeland with 10. Pfaffenberger had 15 and Hightower 12 for the Rams.

The Bulldogs (14-7, 2-0) will close out Round One of District 4-AAAA play at 7 p.m. Friday, Feb. 7, against Goddard at the Pit. The Rockets stand at 9-12, 1-1 after defeating Lovington 59-49 Tuesday in Roswell. Artesia fans are encouraged to turn out in force as the 'Dogs vie for the opening-round sweep. Tickets are on sale now.

STAT BOX

Artesia 74
Portales 48

Artesia (14-7, 2-0): Braylon Vega 9, 1-1 20; Charlie Campbell 3, 10-12 16; Trent Egeland 5, 0-0 10; Clay Kincaid 4, 1-1 9; Cael Houghtaling 2, 1-4 5; Tootie McNeil 2, 0-1 4; Steven Williams 2, 0-0 4; Jack Byers 1, 1-2 3; Corbyn Dominguez 1, 0-0 2; Jace Deans 0, 1-2 1
Totals: 29, 15-23 74

Portales (11-10, 1-1): Carson Pfaffenberger 4, 7-7 15; Jase Hightower 4, 3-7 12; Joel Lujan 2, 2-4 7; Jacoby Bamforth 2, 1-2 6; Pierce Culpepper 1, 0-0 2; Dazjohn Preston 1, 0-0 2; Xavier Tarpeh 0, 2-2 2; Elijah Tellez 1, 0-0 2
Totals: 15, 15-22 48

Field Goals: Artesia 29; Portales 15
Three-Pointers: Artesia 1 (Vega); Portales 3 (Bamforth 1, Hightower 1, Lujan 1)
Free Throws: Artesia 15-23 (65%); Portales 15-22 (68%)
Turnovers: Artesia 11; Portales 17
Fouls: Artesia 18; Portales 15
Fouled Out: None

LADY BULLDOGS

PICTURED: Hattie Harrison skies for a basket and draws the foul during the first quarter Tuesday at Bulldog Pit.
(Photo Courtesy Artesia Bulldog Paw Prints)

Following their big district-opening win over Lovington last week on the road, the Lady Bulldog basketball team was looking for a repeat performance Tuesday at Bulldog Pit. But unfortunately, the Artesia girls could never quite get their offense off the ground against the Class 4A sixth-ranked Ramettes of Portales, and the result was a 57-32 loss.

The Lady 'Dogs struggled against Portales' defensive pressure throughout the evening, posting just a single field goal in the first quarter, that coming off the hand of Hattie Harrison with 2:30 on the clock. At that point, the Ramettes led 11-5. They'd close out the period up 13-7, with Artesia's remaining five points coming from the free-throw line, where they made half of their 10 opportunities.

The second quarter was a low-scoring one for both squads, but the Artesia girls got a breakaway layup from Kailee Padilla and a three from Brookelyn Thacker that -- combined with three more free throws from Jenna Whitmire and a pair by Gracen Kuykendall -- saw them down by a manageable seven at the half, 24-17.

But the third quarter would prove devastating for the Lady Bulldogs. While a putback from Padilla and an Avery Frederick bucket in the paint would be it offensively for Artesia, Portales had their best shooting quarter of the night, putting up 17 points -- nine from beyond the arc -- to go up by 20 heading into the fourth, 41-21. They'd add 16 more in the fourth to the Lady 'Dogs' 11 -- including five each from Padilla and Whitmire -- to round out the 57-32 final.

Padilla finished with 10 for Artesia and Whitmire nine, while Portales' Tya Rippee led all scorers with 12.

The Lady Bulldogs (9-12, 1-1) will next host Goddard at 5:30 p.m. Friday, Feb. 7, in their D4 Round-One finale. The Lady Rockets (12-10) currently trail in the district at 0-2 after falling to Lovington 78-61 Tuesday at Ground Zero. Come Pack the Pit Friday and cheer both the Lady 'Dogs and Bulldogs on to victory over the Rockets! Tickets are on sale now.

STAT BOX

Portales 57
Artesia 32

Artesia (9-12, 1-1): Kailee Padilla 4, 2-9 10; Jenna Whitmire 1, 7-10 9; Ashton Craft 0, 3-4 3; Hattie Harrison 1, 1-3 3; Brookelyn Thacker 1, 0-2 3; Avery Frederick 1, 0-0 2; Gracen Kuykendall 0, 2-2 2
Totals: 8, 15-30 32

Portales (12-9, 2-0): Tya Rippee 4, 1-2 12; Evannie Fulfer 5, 1-1 11; Erin Van Ieuven 3, 1-1 8; Myleigh Banda 0, 7-8 7; Angel Ornelas 2, 2-2 7; Skyler Massey 3, 0-0 6; Maria Lujan 1, 0-0 3; Addyson Mayberry 1, 1-6 3; Aylin Serna 0, 0-2 0
Totals: 19, 13-22 57

Field Goals: Artesia 8; Portales 19
Three-Pointers: Artesia 1 (Thacker); Portales 6 (Rippee 3, Lujan 1, Ornelas 1, Van Ieuven 1)
Free Throws: Artesia 15-30 (50%); Portales 13-22 (59%)
Turnovers: Artesia 18; Portales 13
Fouls: Artesia 19; Portales 19
Fouled Out: Artesia 1 (Whitmire, :30-4Q); Portales 0