The Highland Hornets entered their tilt with the Belen Eagles with three consecutive wins but they'll enter their next game with four. Highland took down Belen 82-66 on Friday. Given Highland's advantage in MaxPreps' New Mexico basketball rankings (they are ranked ninth, while Belen is ranked 71st), the result wasn't entirely unexpected.
It was another big night for Jesus Licon, who scored 39 points along with five rebounds and three steals. Licon is absolutely dominating the point category: he's posted at least 15 every time he's taken the court this season. Another player making a difference was Owen Cheng, who scored 12 points.
Belen lost despite a true team effort on the offense, the best among them being Jordi Rojo, who scored 14 points along with five assists and four steals. Rojo is on a roll when it comes to steals, as he's now grabbed two or more in the last four games he's played. Alan Moreno was another key contributor, scoring 16 points along with three steals.
Highland is on a roll lately: they've won eight of their last ten matches, which provided a nice bump to their 14-4 record this season. As for Belen, they are on a three-game losing streak that has dropped them down to 7-12.
Both teams will have to hit the road in their upcoming games. Highland won't have much time to rest: their next match is against Albuquerque Academy at 2:00 p.m. on January 27th. Albuquerque Academy knows how to get points on the board -- the team has finished with flashy point totals in its past four matchups -- so hopefully Highland likes a good challenge. As for Belen, they will head out on the road to challenge Grants at 7:00 p.m. on Friday.
