IN A TWIST, SANCHEZ TURNS TO HOUSTON'S ST. THOMAS

McAllen Memorial basketball star product Josh Sanchez recently signed on to play at the University of St. Thomas, an NAIA Catholic school in Houston. He will be just two miles from his brother Jonathan at Rice University and sister Ashley at UT medical school.

Family, education and basketball priorities send Memorial Mustangs star from UTRGV to St. Thomas in Houston

BY TJ GARCIA

McALLEN – The outside air was chilly last February 23, but inside the McAllen Memorial gym it was absolutely electric.

Jacketed fans jam- packed the gym sitting shoulder to shoulder from one end to the other. The crimson clad Harlingen Cardinals faithful on one side and those loyal to the home powder blue on the other. It was an important area round boys’ playoff game pitting two power schools with huge fan bases.

And no one wanted to miss this one.

The parking lots overflowed. The concession stand made more than it did all year, and every local basketball guru this side of the Rio Grande was there to watch what would be an outstanding game.

Even UTRGV Coach Lew Hill made an appearance – although brief. Hill knows DI talent isn’t mined in the RGV, but his appearance at the game spoke volumes and created a buzz. McAllen Memorial forward Josh Sanchez was by far the only player on the court that Hill – a DI coach for more than 25 years and knows talent – could even consider for a roster spot. Would he?

That night Sanchez proved he belonged on that court and any other gym that would give him some run. The 6-foot-4 forward rebounded like a mad man. Finishing with 18 boards and 14 points against an imposing Cardinals front line that match him in size but not in desire. He out jumped, out positioned and out hustled every player. He tipped balls, got loose balls and blocked shots.

After the game, Sanchez was drained. McAllen Memorial lost 59-55 and it spelled the end of his high school career. The All-Valley player did all he could, but the Mustangs bowed to the better team.

Hill’s appearance was an auspicious sign because a few months later, the 19-year-old Sanchez announced on Twitter his verbal commitment to play basketball at UTRGV as a walk on. But then a funny thing happened at the gym. He was re-routed to Houston.

“I was committed on playing with UTRGV and in late June the coaches wanted me to play travel ball so I could get more experience because I was going to red shirt,” said Sanchez. “Then at the (summer) tournaments in July playing with the Valley Rebels travel team, I was approached by several coaches all asking if I was still available and interested – one of the first being St. Thomas. And after talking to the coach and my parents, it was an offer I could not pass up.”

Sanchez announced a on August 13 he would continue his basketball career at the University of St. Thomas in Houston. The small NAIA Catholic school located in central Houston offered him athletic and academic scholarship funding. He has already moved into his dorm on campus and is ready to start classes. But for Sanchez, it wasn’t just a basketball decision. It was one that included his family.

Learn more about the University of St. Thomas Celts

Occasionally, the RGV produces dynamic players ready for collegiate basketball. Two seasons ago it was Santa Rosa’s Leo Lara, who signed with DII Texas A&M Commerce. There’s been others like McHi’s JJ Avila (Navy, Colorado State) Edinburg’s Stevan Guerrero (Schreiner), PSJA High’s Luis Mancillas (Schreiner) or Edinburg Vela’s Ryan Garza (St. Edward’s) to name just a few. Certainly, Sanchez fit that bill and more.

Sanchez isn’t on the RGV’s Mount Rushmore of basketball products, but he’s as rock solid as they come. He’s proven himself on and off the court. He was a coach’s player, a yes-sir, no-sir kind of a kid. Sanchez was not a prolific scorer, but a facilitator who played tenacious defense. He was a player that Coach Sammy Cortez could not sit. His passing and court smarts made everybody else better.

And even though he played with intensity, Sanchez was respectful and courteous. He always displayed good sportsmanship. He also hit the books hard and was an outstanding student earning a 3.7 GPA his senior year.

The well-rounded Sanchez participated in DECA, where he advanced to a national competition. He was also in UIL accounting, volunteered for the student mentor program, worked on campus as a co-op student and was in the National Honor Society among other things. The 204-pound Sanchez also played football his senior year.

Sanchez, who started playing basketball at age five, was on varsity for four years. He averaged a double-double (15.4 points per game, 11.5 rebounds per game) as a senior for a 25-10 team, and as a junior scored 17 points a game and pulled down 7.8 rebounds per contest. There’s no doubt that his height and jumping ability allowed him to become a great player, but his tenacious work habits also helped. Early mornings and late nights in the gym. Summer ball. Begging coaches to open gyms and working on the parts of his game that needed the most work.

And while he will red-shirt at St. Thomas his freshman year, he said all the hard work has paid off, and he’s ready to get on the court.

“Playing here at St. Thomas, the biggest thing for me is going to be adjusting,” said Sanchez. “I really need to learn as much as I can from the coach as well as my teammates. It’s a lot different from high school basketball because these guys are a lot bigger, stronger and more athletic. So, I just need to be patient and try my best to adjust my game appropriately.”

St. Thomas, which is in the Red River Athletic Conference with schools such as San Antonio’s Our Lady of the Lake University and Austin’s Huston-Tillotson University, posted its first winning season in five years last year as the Celts went 16-12 overall. Sanchez has already met with his new teammates and said he believes he can fit in well and contribute when he’s called to do so.

Even though the last month has been a whirlwind, he’s satisfied with the way things have shaken out. He added that his parents, John, a counselor at McHi, and Eliza, a teacher at Memorial, are happy as well. And as a family they should be. Josh’s older brother Jonathan, 21, is at Houston’s Rice University, just 1.5 miles away, and on the Rice University football team. And sister Ashley, 23, is at the University of Texas’ McGovern Medical School, two miles away, at Houston’s famed Texas Medical Center.

“My brother is still at Rice, and I am ridiculously close to him. I think he’s no more than five minutes away, and my sister is also extremely close so it (going to St. Thomas) definitely played a big part in my decision,” said Josh, who is the youngest of four siblings. “Both my parents and the rest of my family are almost in disbelief in how perfect it turned out. And it happened so quick, but I know we couldn’t be happier.”

OFFICIALLY, A REALLY GOOD CALL

FORMER NBA REF HEADS UP TRAINING FOR RGV OFFICIALS

Former NBA and current NCAA DI basketball official Tommy Nunez (center back) headed up an all-star cast of referee trainers at the RGV Chapter of Basketball Official training camp at the Edinburg Sports & Wellness Center.

BY TJ GARCIA

EDINBURG - Tommy Nuñez officiated the NBA’s most infamous contest: the 2004 Indiana Pacers at Detroit Pistons brawl game.

It was a game between two teams tough as nails. Two squads that had their share of enigmatic and volatile personalities such Ron Artest (Metta World Peace), Ben Wallace, Rasheed Wallace, Stephen Jackson, Jermaine O’Neal and a slew of others. What’s more, playing in front of Detroit’s rough and tumble home crowd has never been a picnic.

Although he’s reticent to talk about the worst game fight in NBA history, Nuñez – all 5-foot-7 of him – nearly stopped the melee before it spiraled out of control. He dove right into the middle of the initial confrontation between Wallace and Artest pulling players apart and shoving others away. Other officials watched while Nunez showed no fear.

Tommy Nuñez. NCAA DI official.

Nuñez, coaches and other officials actually had the shoving match under control and players separated. But when a fan threw a cup at Artest a few seconds later, what followed was pure bedlam right out of the WWE.

Still, even with that notorious game, Nuñez continued his successful stint in the NBA officiating in the league from 2004 through 2012 sharing the court with players like LeBron James, Kevin Durant and Tim Duncan. Now in his 32nd year commanding the hardcourt, the Phoenix native returned to NCAA DI in 2013 calling games mostly in western leagues like the PAC 12 and the Mountain West. He also instructs at a handful of referee camps throughout the year.

Recently, Nuñez, 58, was the special guest at the Rio Grande Valley Basketball Chapter officials' camp in mid-August at the superb Edinburg Sports & Wellness Center and RGV Vipers practice facility.

The camp drew about 60 basketball refs from around the Rio Grande Valley and Texas to officiate local tournament games, get evaluated on film, attend workshops and get feedback from a cadre of NCAA-level referees and evaluators like Nuñez. Camp organizers said the event was held to train up mid-level and experienced officials’ competencies and education and to recruit and identify new talent.

Nuñez held film sessions, watched games and held one-on-ones with referees to instruct officials on the rules and the nuances of overseeing a basketball game. Nuñez, whose father Tommy Nunez was the NBA’s first Latino official, said even with three officials on the court, it’s difficult to see everything. However, refs must stay disciplined to their court responsibilities and know the rules.

“There’s so much to teach at camps like this – and this is a great camp – I like to keep to the basics,” said Nuñez. “Camps like this you keep it as basic as best you can. There’s so much to learn they can get overwhelmed. You get them on the floor. You get them to blow whistle. You get them to run to the right spots. And with the more games they see, the other things they need to learn start to creep in. And they start making the right adjustments.”

Officials of nearly every skill and experience level participated in the three-day training. There were young novices without as much as a Texas Association of Sports Officials (TASO) certification to more experienced arbiters that routinely call 5A and 6A varsity games and even others that work on the NCAA DII & DIII levels. The group’s diversity also included a half dozen or so women.

Two officials working RGV training camp games.

Nuñez, who instructs at just a few camps annually, added that “learning” camps like the one in Edinburg where officials are calling live games, being evaluated and then sit in on their own film sessions, are the ones he likes the best. He also said that working with younger refs get them more engaged.

In one afternoon film session, deep inside the Wellness Center in a darkened room with a scattering of open pizza boxes and soda cans, Nuñez meticulously broke down a dozen or more video examples of rules and calls local officials could learn from. He reviewed topics such as the responsibility of court zones, training the eyes not watch the ball (but areas of responsibility), nuances of the charge call, and explained the dreaded restricted area.

Bert Jaime, RGV Chapter second vice president in charge of new officials’ training, said the collegiate-level evaluators and Nuñez proved excellent choices for the camp.

“There’s not a higher class of officials than those in the NBA so when you have had that opportunity for a number of years, number one you are among the very best and you are exposed to a tremendous amount of education and training,” said Jaime. “And then you have all the other clinicians here that are on the college level where the discipline is extremely precise. Honestly, it’s a staff (of evaluators) that’s second to none, and we can compare with anybody.”

Watch 90-second vid with more on young officials with Nuñez

Indeed, in addition to Nuñez, there were several esteemed trainers such as Calvin Harris, TASO President; Becky Marshall, former Big XII supervisor of women’s officials; Jason Simnack, NBA G League and NCAA DI official and several others with valuable experience. Also RGV Chapter leaders such as President Robert Torres and First Vice President Victor Garza were on hand along with camp presenter Ruben Ramos.

Rookie referee Zac Garcia, 18, who began blowing his whistle this summer and has just a few dozen games under his belt, said the camp was very helpful.

“I was a little nervous because there were so many high-level people around. Officials from the NBA, G League and DI, and they were here to critique us,” said Garcia. “But it was good. I got to meet new people and learned more about the game and officiating. The video sessions were solid. This camp made us all better.”

That’s exactly what Nuñez wants to hear.

Click here for more info on the RGV Basketball Chapter