AZTEC — Turnovers killed them the first night of the Lady Tiger Invitational Basketball Tournament but they came back and took care of the basketball the second day of the tourney to capture the consolation plaque. Montezuma-Cortez High School varsity basketball team showed the type of basketball they were capable of playing.

The Panthers beat Ignacio 59-46 on Saturday, Dec. 16, after falling to Navajo Prep (Farmington) 53-49 on Friday, Dec. 15.

"They finally played two halves of basketball," MCHS head girls basketball coach Stan Yake said immediately following the game against Ignacio. "We made much better decisions. It was our best ball so far of the season."

Cortez jumped out to a quick 4-0 start against the Bobcats when Emilie Lanier made two fast baskets in the first quarter. Casey Bauer made a turnaround shot in the lane to put the Panthers up 7-2. But Ignacio rallied and trailed 10-9 with 52.4 seconds left. Cortez led 13-12 when the period ended.

The Panthers got good looks but missed several easy shots. Arla Velasquez made a basket off a give-and-go to give the Class 3A Bobcats an 18-11 lead. But Cortez came back and trailed 22-18 at the half.

Stefanie Allison went to work and dominated play in the third quarter. She scored two quick hoops to tie the game at 22-all. With Ignacio holding a precarious 29-27 lead, the Panthers tied it at 32 when Allison drove the lane. Ignacio led 37-36 when the quarter ended.

The game was tied a few minutes later at 42 early in the fourth. Bauer put Cortez up 44-42 and then Marcie Baca came off the bench to can a three-pointer to put Cortez up 47-42. Ignacio needed a time out at 50-42. Cortez pressed and Ignacio ballhandlers committed four straight turnovers. The Panthers scored six more points to lead 56-42 with less than a minute to play. MCHS coasted from there to the win.

Allison, who was named to the All-Tournament team, finished with 19 points. Bauer added 12, Denise Newlin 8, and Lanier and Linda Smart 6 apiece. Crystal Young led Ignacio with 12 while Julie Valdez and Katie Whiteskunk added 9 each.

"We played much better defense. We got a lot of defensive rebounds. We also played very well on offense, running more plays. Sometimes we would have three players running our offense and two players doing something else. They played under control and did not turn the ball over so much. I was pleased with our players who came off the bench in Marcie Baca, Lindsey Wilson, and Linda Smart," Yake added.

Too many turnovers and no rebounding hurt Cortez the first night against a good Navajo Prep team the night before in Lillywhite Gym. Navajo Prep, which finished third in the New Mexico State Class 2A Tournament the year before, gave the Panthers all they wanted and then some.

Navajo Prep could have beaten the Panthers more had it made some good looks it missed early in the game. The Eagles jumped out to an 8-2 lead when Delano Yazzie made an uncontested layup. Newlin made an old fashioned three-point play but they still trailed 10-7 with 2:57 to go. Allison’s layup just before the first period ended gave the Panthers a 13-12 lead when the quarter ended.

Prep’s Vanessa Francis made one-of-two free throws for a 20-15. MCHS came back to tie the game at 20-20. Lanier made a nice shot from the wing to put Cortez up 22-20. Wilson’s three-point play with 16.4 seconds put Cortez up 26-22 just before the half.

Cortez missed several layups and was not in good position to get a rebound early in the third quarter. Utahna Livingston put Navajo Prep up 28-25. But Prep took advantage of the Cortez miscues and led 33-28. Cortez scored two straight and Navajo Prep called time holding a 33-32 lead. The game was tied at 35. Navajo Prep led 39-37 at the end of the period.

But things went steadily down hill for the Panthers when they coughed up the ball time and time again on trips down the floor. Navajo Prep led 41-37 thanks to those turnovers. Lanier did managed to pull Cortez back to within a point at 41-40 after making an old fashioned three-point play. Kendra Henry’s easy layup with 3:31 gave the Eagles a 48-42 lead. Following a few more mistakes, the Eagles increased their advantage to 52-49 when Yake called time with 34.4 seconds remaining. Stacie Goodluck’s free throw with 6.6 seconds made 53-49, two trips down the floor. The Panthers could not score.

Bauer popped in 14 while Allison and Lanier scored 11 each. Yazzie paced Navajo Prep with 14 while Francis scored 12.

The Panthers, 3-4 overall, will play their final game of the 2000 portion of the season by visiting Shiprock, N.M., at 7:30 p.m. Friday, Dec. 22.

The Panther boys finished fifth in the annual Navajo Generating Station Tournament which was held Thursday-Saturday, Dec. 14-16, in Page, Ariz.

MCHS stopped Tuba City, Ariz., 69-64 in a come-from-behind effort during the first round of the tourney on Thursday. They faced host Page in the semifinals but lost 59-39. They faced Dixie of St. George, Utah, in a consolation bracket game and lost 64-42.

"This was a very good tournament," MCHS head coach Wade Mortensen said. "It was good for us to face teams like those."

In the opener against Tuba City, Cortez fell behind 25-14 after the first period of play. But the Panthers never gave up. They outscored Tuba City 19-17 in the second quarter. It was in the third period where Cortez made a big push to get back into the game by outpointing Tuba City 17-5. Cortez held its own in the final period by outscoring them 19-17.

Chris Garland led all scorers with 23, including hitting two key three-point goals in the third quarter. Marcus Mortensen and Gabe Evans both scored 13, and Layne Frazier 10. For Tuba City, James Justice popped in 22 and Lance Martin 10.

The Panthers took on Page, the eventual winner of the tourney, in the semifinals. Page led 29-18 at the half and outscored Cortez 14-5 in the third quarter to coast to the win.

Mortensen tossed in 16 while Evans added 9. Adam Griffith led Page with 20.

The loss put Cortez into a loser’s game on Saturday. Dixie used a 21-5 scoring outburst in the second and outscored Cortez 21-11 in the fourth. The Panthers, though, did lead 13-10 at the end of the first quarter.

Mortensen hit for 13, Kyle Wilson 11, and Mike Rivas 8.

"We just need to get more consistent," coach Mortensen remarked. "Against a weaker team you can play three out of four quarters and still win. But all of these teams were good. You have just got to put together four quarters to beat a good team. We will get a good test tonight (7:30 at Farmington High)."

Dolores boys and girls were scheduled to host Shiprock, N.M., in a rare Monday night game (after deadline).

The annual Blue Jay Classic gets under way today (5:30 and 7:30 p.m.) in the Mancos Performance Center.

The Mancos girls will face Kirtland-Central JVs at 5:30 and the MHS boys will battle Ignacio at 7:30 tonight.