Both Ram teams suffer first loss at Littlefield's Wildcat Classic

LITTLEFIELD, Texas — When you face excellent competition, your undefeated record might not be there once the night is over.

That was the case in a double dose on Friday, as the Portales High basketball teams both fell to 8-1 with semifinal setbacks at the Wildcat Classic. The Portales girls lost 55-50 against Levelland, while the boys were beaten by Lamesa 79-60.

Miranda Villegas scored 16 to lead the Lady Lobos (17-3), who outscored Portales 15-9 in the third quarter to take a 44-39 lead.

“They’re a really good team,” Portales girls coach Wade Fraze said. “They’ve got size; their biggest girl is probably 6-3. They’ve got shooters, drivers. They’re the best team we’ve seen this season. They’ve got a lot of players who can step up.”

Portales, led by Zamorye Cox with 13 and Sky Marianito with 12, went without a 3-pointer on the night — which Fraze credited to a the Lady Lobos using their length to close out on shooters in their zone defense.

Fraze said it was tough to say having seen the teams months apart, but Levelland was somewhat similar to Hope Christian.

“It was a good game for us to play that kind of opponent, with size, skill and strength,” Fraze said. “They’re good every year, so it was good for us.”

In the boys game, Lamesa pulled away with a 26-15 fourth quarter, but Rams coach Rickie McBroom said the entire night was a challenge.

“The thing we struggled with the whole game is their quickness,” McBroom said. “They’re the quickest, fastest team we’ve played in several years. We had real trouble keeping them out of the lane. They just put tremendous defense on us.”

The Tornadoes (15-2) had four players in double figures, with both Buddy Williams and Jayleel Edwards scoring 17. Junior Ramirez led all scorers and three Rams in double figures with 24 points, including six of Portales’ 12 3-pointers.

The Rams, who will face either Happy or Littlefield in the 4:30 p.m. (MST) third-place game, faced what McBroom called easily the best team they’d seen all year.

“I was proud of our kids,” McBroom said. “They played hard the entire time. We’re going to regroup, hopefully show up tomorrow and play better.”

The Portales girls are hoping to play Denver City in a 3:30 p.m. game, but were waiting on a final thumbs up from the tournament organizers. Portales was scheduled to face the Lubbock Titans in the third-place game, but New Mexico Activities Association rules won’t allow Portales to face a home-school team.

Portales Athletic Director Mark Gallegos said the rule is rooted in the National Federation of High Schools, but Texas teams play under University Interscholastic League rules instead of NFHS.