RELATED STORIES

• High School Basketball: Rio Rancho slows its up-tempo game to defeat defending champion Manzano

Related Links

• High School Sports Blog

More High School

• Richard Stevens: Faces I'll remember are the smallest ones
• Michael Garcia: Here's to you, athletes, coaches and friends. These memories - and lessons - will last forever.
• Tribune sports: Five faves

MOST RECENT TRIB STORIES

• ABQTrib.com to remain available
  08:48 a.m., February 25, 2008
• Congressman is indicted
  08:37 a.m., February 23, 2008
• Series of attacks target Green Zone
  08:36 a.m., February 23, 2008
• Iran is defying U.N., agency says
  08:35 a.m., February 23, 2008
• Waterboarding approval probed
  08:34 a.m., February 23, 2008

TRIB IN THE BLOGOSPHERE*

• Albuquerque Old Town
• Ty Murray Invitational thrills fans in Albuquerque
• Is Rome Burning?
• Ominous Skies
• The Road to Invalidation

*Note: The Tribune does not create and is not responsible for the blogosphere's headlines and stories. These links to blogs talking about ABQTrib.com are automatically generated. Use them at your own risk.

STORY TOOLS

• E-mail story
• Comments
• iPod friendly
• Printer friendly

SHARE THIS STORY [?]

I think that our lack of starters should cause us some problems early in the season.

That's what Frank Castillo wrote in a mid-November e-mail to The Tribune after being asked for his team's season outlook.

Castillo, the veteran La Cueva boys basketball coach, was wrong.

At 6-2, his Bears sport the best record of any boys team entering the Duke City vs. Sun City Challenge.

La Cueva was scheduled to play El Paso Cathedral at noon today at Tingley Coliseum. Friday, the Bears face Coronado, one of El Paso's top teams, in the round-robin event.

"Overall, it's been a really good start for us," Castillo said. "Especially considering we have only one returning starter. We basically lost all our scoring (from 2005)."

What Castillo has is a strong defensive group whose chemistry belies its lack of varsity experience.

He had his Bears play more games over the summer. It was more to build camaraderie than basketball skills.

"A lot of time you have teams that have a lot of good talent, but the people just don't get along," Castillo said. "We play defense, and we get along."

La Cueva has held opponents to 59.6 points per game. Alone, the number isn't particularly impressive. It looks better when you consider the competition.

Five of the Bears' wins have come at the expense of four competitive programs - St. Pius X, Cibola (twice), Eldorado and Highland.

La Cueva suffered its only two losses against arguably the state's top two Class 5A teams, Rio Rancho and Manzano. Castillo has no complaints.

"Even against Rio Rancho," said Castillo of the game La Cueva lost 6-71. "(Our defense played well); we just sent them to the free-hrow line too many times."

Last year, Sun City boys teams provided few speed bumps to their Duke City counterparts.

Metro area schools won five of the six games - two El Paso teams faced three Albuquerque teams - in 2005.

Repeating that success rate might prove difficult. Combined, the three Sun City teams boast a 27-12 record.

Castillo finished that forecasting, mid-November e-mail, writing: "By the time we get to district, we should be able to compete with the best teams in our district."

If the Bears handle the El Paso trio, they might be the best team in the district.