7K ALL THE WAY
Seven thousand feet elevation. The highest capital city in the United States. Where four of the seven common ecosystems clash. Mountain, desert, grassland and forest. All neatly packed around four distinct seasonal changes in northern New Mexico. But as seasons fluctuate more and more these passing years, the variable that remains constant is elevation and its astounding impact on health and athletic performance.
The foundation of human evolution begins with the breath. At best a human can live a few weeks without water, a few months without food; but only a few minutes without air. The physiology of breathing is a fairly simple construction, starting with the nose and mouth pulling air through the trachea and travelling through an exponential, comprehensive branching of bronchi ending in 300-400 million lung sacs (alveoli). Then the magic begins. As we inhale and exhale oxygen and carbon dioxide do the sacred dance of gas exchange in these lung sacs, that then deliver usable O2 to capillaries and into red blood cells that pump through our entire vascular system. From there our organs, muscles and connective tissues receive the oxygen rich mix to metabolize into energy and give us life!
The variable of elevation comes into play during passive breathing. The rate of breathing at rest is determined by the pressure differential between our internal bodies and our external environment. When the air is thin, like at seven thousand feet, our breathing muscle (diaphragm) works harder to reach the optimal pressure ratio. You may feel like it's "easier to breathe" the closer you are to sea level. This is due to greater air pressure at lower elevation, or air pressure that is more akin to our internal psi. By passively working the diaphragm at 7K we high desert dwellers get a big benefit when it comes to strengthening our breathing muscles to compensate for low external air pressure. Exercising at Santa Fe's altitude conditions the diaphragm, which strengthens the heart to pump oxygen through the vascular system. The superpower gained is a greater range of energy metabolism, resulting in stronger organs and a blood doping effect at sea level. Basketball is one of the very best cardiovascular activities, so basically we ballers have superhero abilities.
Week 19 Recap:
Two games on the docket for Comp League Tuesdays. Starting the action was Killer Bz (7-3) vs Blakes Lottabuckets (5-5). The ball was moving and the points were stacking as these two offensive juggernauts dueled to the tune of fast breaking and shot making. Ultimately it was the highly efficient play of Antonio Lovato's 25 pts 6 rebs and 3 dimes that allowed the Killers to preserve the 91-84 dub. Sidiki Mudada was buzzin' as he stung the burger kings with 18 pts and Jacob Roybal was protector of the nectar as he flew in for 12 rebs to compliment his 13 pts, 4 dimes and 4 steals. For Lottabuckets Isaac Shanley was up to shenanigans as he single handedly shooed the buzzing with twelve three pointers, 49 pts and 16 rebs. Jermaine Wilkins also dropped 16 pts but it wasn't enough to get that honeypot.
Game two between Team Nuevo (6-3) and Silent Storm (5-5) was a tight one until Josh Salazar broke the silence in the second half with an array of bombs from deep and finished with 28 pts. Also for team New, Luis "Manos" Guerro pounded the paint and hit from deep for a 10 pt, 11 reb double double. On the other side of the ball Wilford Troup played big without leading scorer Shawn Daniels and went for 26 pts and 4 thefts but the rest of the Storm couldn't generate the atmospheric pressure to turn the Nuevo to viejo.
Championship night for our winter Rec League kicked off Wednesday at 6pm between defending champs (2)Flash Flood and (3)Blakes Lottabuckets. The intensity was turned up and both teams played polished, physical ball. The stars were shining as Isaac Shanley paced Blakes with 21 pts and 15 rebs while Matt Brito led the Flood with 28 pts and 6 rebs. Eli Dawson provided quality Blakes service with a 13 pt 10 reb performance and Dom Roybal flooded the stat sheet with 16 pts, 11 rebs and 6 dimes. The Flood used a late game surge and eleven point second half advantage to advance with a 79-66 victory. Awesome effort and great season Blakes!
In the other semi-final between (1)505 Unit and (4)Dad Bods we were gifted a first half for the ages. As both teams showed up and showed out, knotted 42-40 at half. The Bods used a beautifully balanced attack that resulted in four players racking up double figures led by Jacob Roybal's 19 pts and 13 rebs. But in the second stanza Unit cranked up the defensive intensity and found bigs Steven Lovato (25 pts 12 rebs), Brandon Encinias (20 pts 9 rebs) and Chano Herrera (19 pts 13 rebs) often to punish the smaller Bods inside and on the boards, leading to an 80-69 win for the Units. Thanks for season Dad Bods!
That result set up a rematch of last year's final between (1)505 Unit vs (2)Flash Flood. This game was everything we expected. Intensity on the defensive end; resulting in 36 total game turnovers, 28 total game fouls, and on offense it was stars making big plays and big shots. But none bigger than Chano Herrera and his 38 pts as he dominated every facet on offense. Matt Brito and Dom Roybal played their roles as slasher and splasher, both netting 19 pts while big man Luis Alvarado put up 14 pts and 7 rebs. The Units got inspired play from veterans Mario Montano (12 pts) and Steven Lovato (10 pts 9 rebs) to hold off Flood's late game comeback and secure the Rec League Title 77-72! Great game and thanks to both teams for incredible seasons!
REC LEAGUE ALL TOURNEY:
Isaac Shanley(Blakes Lottabuckets)
Jacob Roybal(Dad Bods)
Dom Roybal(Flash Flood)
Steven Lovato(505 Unit)
REC LEAGUE TOURNEY MVP:
Chano Herrera(505 Unit)
Amazing night of tournament basketball! Thanks to all the teams for intense, clean, fun basketball. We couldn't be more proud of our league, all the players, officials, and game managers.
Reminder that this Monday, March 2nd we will have the last two regular season Comp League games starting at 7pm but will have Open Gym from 4:30-6:30pm. Comp League Tourney starts Tuesday at 6pm. See schedule here.
Respect the game, Santa Fe Swish
