And now, for the girls ... (AAAA projections)

I'll skip the AAAAA portion of the bracket because ... Well, the only way Santa Fe High gets to the state tournament is if: 1) the girls discover the game of basketball; and 2) they buy tickets. For anyone who wants to complain, remember this: the Demonettes have won one time in the last 40 games. And no one complained about the lack of coverage of that team this year. Not to mention, we're still waiting for that first call-in from head coach Elmer Chavez. Good luck in AAAA, girls. Suggestion: Get a home-and-home series with Roswell Goddard (0-27).

AAAA
1. Kirtland Central (21-2). Thanks to two District 1AAAA wins over Shiprock, the second-ranked team in AAAA by the NMHSCA poll. The Lady Broncos' two losses came against an Arizona school and AAA Thoreau. Add to that wins over Belen and Los Alamos, and Kirtland Central is 10-0 against AAAA competition. Enough said.
2. Shiprock (20-6). Aside from the losses to the No. 1 seed, the Lady Chieftains have beaten 2AAAA champion Española Valley, Belen and Grants. That's why the Lady Sundevils are ...
3. Española (23-4). The pride of District 2AAAA went 6-1 against AAAA schools outside of the district and is 14-2 overall. The loss to Los Alamos doesn't hurt when considering the Lady Sundevils lost to Shiprock and beat Grants, Moriarty, Piedra Vista and Aztec. A 2-1 mark over the Lady Hilltoppers helps greatly as well.
4. Roswell (16-9). The Lady Coyotes are a perfect 8-0 against AAAA competition, with wins over Los Alamos, Del Norte (the 5AAAA champ), Deming (3AAAA) and Silver. Roswell was one of those rare southern schools that ventured outside of the south to bolster its resume. This is its reward.
5. Los Alamos (19-9). The Lady Hilltoppers played the most AAAA schools of any school, and went 15-5 overall. Among the résumé-boosting victories include Volcano Vista (the 6AAAA champion), Del Norte, and St. Pius X (the 6AAAA runner-up). The win over Española gives Los Alamos bragging rights of going 3-1 against AAAA district champions. Impressive, indeed.
6. Volcano Vista (15-10). Of the Lady Hawks' 10 losses, eight have come against AAAAA teams. They are 10-2 overall in the class, with two wins over the Lady Knights, another over Valencia and a 6AAAA split with St. Pius. That 2-8 start is a thing of the past.
7. Deming (16-9). The Lady Wildcats looked bad when I saw them at the Lady Jaguar Invitational in December, and a 7-8 start didn't look much better. However, Deming is 9-1 since then and the 3AAAA champion. Still, the Lady Wildcats lack a "Look at us" win (only against 5AAAA runner-up Valencia, compared to losses to Roswell and Artesia). Look where they end up.
8. Del Norte (14-12). The Lady Knights went 9-6 against AAAA competition, but their signature win was over the Lady Sartans. They couldn't beat Roswell, Los Alamos and Volcano Vista (twice). The district champion will get the home game regardless of seed, but they belong here.
9. Artesia (14-10). At first glance, a 9-3 record in class looks good. And there's a win over Del Norte. But the Lady Bulldogs beat a 3-23 Bernalillo team, Albuquerque Academy (7-20) and Belen (7-17). Two close losses to Roswell do help, though.
10. St. Pius X (14-10). The defending state champion slumped along at 6-8 until a six-game wining streak boosted its image. Included in that string were wins over Valencia and Los Alamos. It resurrected the champs to a higher seed.
11. Piedra Vista (16-11). The Lady Panthers are the leaders of the pedestrian group that follows. While it has a winning record, Piedra Vista's biggest win is over a 7-16 Grants team. That doesn't say much.
12. Silver (14-10). Winning record, no stand-out wins. In fact, it even lost to ...
13. Capital (11-13). The Lady Jaguars are 8-8 against district competition, but they lost twice in a row to Taos. That hurt their standing. And with the Lady Hilltoppers at No. 5, Capital had to go somewhere. Down.
14. Valencia (13-14). Here's another Lady Jaguars team that gets in, but mostly based on finishing tied for second in a bad district. Nothing gaudy, just a 6-8 AAAA record.
15. Chaparral (14-12). Yes, the Lady Lobos have a winning record, but until district season started, they played NO AAAA teams. A big no-no if you want o reap the rewards of a winning record.
16. Taos (10-18). It came down to another 3AAAA team, Santa Teresa, and the Lady Tigers. Taos' 3-1 push at the end of the season got it past the Lady Desert Warrriors, who own an out-of-district win over the winless Lady Rockets (see above). The Lady Tigers do, as well, but those Capital wins give them the upper hand.
Congrats, Coach Robert Trujillo.