Mario Herrera got the opportunity.

Isaac Jeantete got the points.

Together, they helped Santa Fe High get a trophy.

The pair teamed up at a most crucial time, as Herrera picked the pocket of Capital High freshman Christian Martinez and Jeantete ended up with the ball. Jeantete's breakaway layup with 27.1 seconds left gave the Demons a 48-46 win in the third-place game of the Jaguars' Al Armendariz Classic in Edward A. Ortiz Memorial Gymnasium on Saturday night.

While Jeantete got Santa Fe High (5-4) the lead, he wasn't about to bask in the glory of the moment.

"Mario really caused the steal," Jeantete said. "I just came up with it. He poked the ball and he didn't have control of it, so I grabbed it and took off."

The Santa Fe High defense was in firm control after that. Capital tried to set up guard Isaiah Bustamante for the final shot, but it never got there.

Instead, 6-foot-2 senior post Joseph Chavez flung a 20-footer with 4 seconds left that hit the back of the rim, and Jeantete hauled it in as he was fouled with 1.4 seconds.

"The play wasn't for Joe," Jaguars head coach Mark Senteney said. "It was supposed to be Isaiah, but we didn't get a screen for him."

While Jeantete missed the one-and-one, Capital never got off a shot. It ended a frustrating final 2 minutes for the Jaguars. Twice, they turned the ball over, with one coming on a charging violation by Reece Goodman. It was his fifth foul and he took a seat on the bench for the fourth time in five games.

"I got happy feet and ... and I just wanted to win so badly," Goodman said. "I just wanted to take it from them, to score and end it."

It happened after Capital (6-4) took a 46-44 lead on the strength of an 8-0 run that was capped by a pair of free throws by Goodman at the 2:44 mark.

Until then, Capital had the momentum, forcing three Demons turnovers during the run and four misses.

But when the time called for leadership — especially from the seniors — it was lacking.

"Reece has got to know those situations," Senteney said. "You gotta play smart with four fouls. But when you're up two and you have the ball and there's a minute left, you don't need to go to the basket unless you absolutely have to. You're just holding the ball, and getting ready to go knock down some free throws."

Santa Fe High certainly did that, ending with Josh Lucero's pair at 1:13 to knot the score at 46-all. Before Jeantete's miss, the Demons had knocked down 13 straight from the line and were 19-for-22.

Herrera, who finished with a team-high 14 points, was 6-for-6. It made a prophet out of Demons head coach Lenny Roybal.

"The thing I put on the chalkboard was that, 'If nothing else, let's hit our free throws,' " Roybal said.

Santa Fe High's ability to get to the line helped it mold a 44-38 lead with 4:56 to go.

Then Roybal deployed a five-out offense designed to spread the court and make the Jaguars chase. It just didn't work out that way.

"We got the ball inside," Roybal said. "Isaac went up twice and he didn't draw the foul or make the basket. Then there were a lot of loose balls that they weren't picking up. I think what happened was that we didn't finish on our end of the court."

What the Demons couldn't do on the offensive end, they made sure to complete on defense.

CHAMPIONSHIP

Pueblo (Colo.) Central 56, Pueblo (Colo.) West 42

In another matchup of intracity rivals, the Wildcats (8-1) scored the first seven points and cruised to the tournament title. Pueblo Central grew the lead to 35-19 at the half before the Cyclones put up a better fight.

Ryan Trujillo led the Wildcats with 16 points, while 6-7 post Donte Lucas added 13 and Trent Thompson had 10. Connor Roumph led Pueblo West (5-4) with 11 points.

FIFTH PLACE

Gadsden 64, Piedra Vista 51

The Panthers were going to win regardless of the outcomes, the question was which one.

Gadsden (7-5) jumped out to a 21-9 lead only to have Piedra Vista creep to within 52-47 before outscoring the Four Corners Panthers 12-5 in the fourth.

Mario Medrano led Gadsden with 10 points as 10 players scored in all.

Joey Murphy led Piedra Vista (4-5) with 16 points, and Dominic Valdez added 13.

SEVENTH PLACE

Bernalillo 69, West Las Vegas 54

The Spartans (1-8) scored their first win of the season as Ivan Luna scored 25 points in his fourth game of the season. He had 30 during Thursday's loss to Santa Fe High. Stephen Lujan had 11 in a supporting role against the Dons.

West Las Vegas, which trailed 57-37 heading into the fourth quarter, had Ambrose Castellano with 17 points and Steven Gonzales with 12.