District season is upon us now ...

At least for the big schools. All the regular-season tournaments and most big nondistrict games are behind teams around New Mexico. Thus begins the stretch run for the coveted 16 spots for the state tournaments in boys and girls basketball.
So, I will dedicate the beginning of the week to list and quickly summarize the big matchups for the week. Times are approximate due to C-team and JV games, which we all know run long. Very long.
All records provide reflect play before Tuesday's games.

So, without further adieu ...

Today
Boys
Albuquerque High (4-12) at Santa Fe High (7-10), 7 p.m.
Skinny: The Demons were riding high 10 days ago, with a three-game-in-three-days winning streak over Albuquerque Cibola, Capital and St. Michael's. Now, they desperately need to start off the District 2AAAAA season strongly. A loss to the Bulldogs, who are 4-12 entering the contest, would be a crucial blow to the Demons' state tournament chances.
It didn't help that two players - Issac Jeantette and Mario Herrera - were suspended for a 62-43 loss to No. 2 Manzano on Thursday, but that was followed by Saturday's 79-64 loss at Albuquerque Eldorado. Herrera played on Saturday, Jeantette did not.
Will Jeantette be on hand - and in uniform - for tonight?

Wednesday
Boys
Capital (11-7) at Española Valley (16-2), 7 p.m.
Skinny: The Jaguars have come up short for the last 12 games against their District 2AAAA foes, so a win here would do wonders for their confidence. It would come on the heels of a 46-44 win at Albuquerque St. Pius X, the three-time reigning AAAA champion that had gone 6-1 over its previous seven games.
Capital's problem is that it can't shoot - either from the perimeter or from the free-throw line. Isaiah Bustamante and Mark Maes are inconsistent from the perimeter, and the Jaguars can be downright obscene in running their halfcourt offense.
Española doesn't win pretty, but the Sundevils do win. They held off Taos 64-56 in their district opener on Jan. 13 and then had to navigate a rough third quarter at Albuquerque High to beat the Bulldogs, 67-49. The Sundevils have lived from the perimeter, but an emerging threat is 6-foot-4 junior post Gabe Rodriguez, who is providing a spark in the paint. If he maintains his aggressiveness, the Sundevils will win a 13th straight over the Jaguars.

Thursday
Girls
Pojoaque Valley (16-0) at Las Vegas Robertson (8-8), 7 p.m.
The Elkettes are big and strong in the post, but so are the Lady Cardinals. That's the best way to attack Pojoaque, which seems to find getting to the basket easier and easier as the season progresses. Brooke Knezevich will need perhaps her best game of the season to neutralize 6-foot-2, 250-plus pound Pojoaque senior Jackie Bartleson, the most immovable of objects in the paint. But someone else will need to step up against the Elkettes' all-everything player, Ellen Cruz. She is just as capable of working down low as she is to find the cutter in the lane.
Here's another point to ponder: Since Knezevich began playing on Dec. 11, Robertson is 8-4.

Friday
Boys
Pojoaque Valley (8-7) at Santa Fe Indian School (N/A), 7 p.m.
Skinny: The District 2AAA winner here should emerge as the chief challenger to the Horsemen, the four-time defending champions. After an 8-2 start, the Elks are in free-fall. Could it be that teams have figured out how to defend their 3-point shooting prowess? Or are the Elks not as good as they looked at the start of the year. The Braves, meanwhile, will be coming off their biggest test of the year, against the No. 3 Sun Devils of Albuquerque Sandia Prep. SFIS might not be big (no player is listed taller than 5-10) but few teams are quicker.

Saturday
Boys
Hobbs (13-4) at Española Valley (16-2), 7 p.m.
This is the matchup between the tradition that is vs. the tradition that could have been. The Eagles are the standard bearers of basketball in the state of New Mexico. Their 17 state titles top all boys programs in New Mexico and are equalled only by the girls of Kirtland Central. When Sundevil fans make he return trip to Hobbs next year, they will see that tradition and history laid out not just in a trophy case. They will be met by a museum-like shrine to Hobbs athletics, with most of the space dedicated to boys basketball.
Española counters with the spirit of a community that identifies itself with its basketball team, one that has yet to make it even to a state final in its history. This game will go far in helping determine if the Sundevils make that historic trip - and perhaps an even more historic trophy presentation - in March.