Some players step up on the biggest stage, others shy away, but he lived for it.
“I live for those big moments. There’s a lot of people that don’t think I’m good enough or don’t think I can play at the next level, so those are the times I got to show people that I belong on the court,” Luna said.
Cool, quiet and nonchalant off the court, Luna plays the game like a cold-blooded assassin once he steps onto the hardwood.
Once the ball is tipped, he plays with a laser-like focus. Each step, dribble and shot designed to rip the heart out of the opposing defense, and he did that repeatedly with the Diamondbacks this season.
Luna scored 17.9 points, brought down 4.2 rebounds, dished out 3.4 assists and came away with 2.2 steals per game while leading Sharyland Pioneer to a historic 28-7 season, the best mark in program history, ultimately resulting in an appearance in the Class 5A Region IV tournament in San Antonio.
After earning All-Area Newcomer of the Year honors as a freshman, Luna capped off his senior season by being named The Monitor’s 2019-20 All-Area Boys Basketball Player of the Year.
“It was definitely a grind, but I enjoyed the whole process,” Luna said. “It was a lot of fun, I learned a lot from playing basketball, playing varsity ball all four years, built a lot of relationships and made a lot of memories with people.”
Luna spent his freshman and sophomore seasons playing at McAllen Rowe before transferring to Duncanville for his junior year. While at Duncanville, Luna became a starter and reached the highest level of the game as the Panthers won the UIL Class 6A state championship.
After his junior year, Luna moved back to the Rio Grande Valley and found a home at Sharyland Pioneer.
“I learned a lot over there at Duncanville. It really helped me learn the game of basketball, learn the playoff route and how hard it is to win in the playoffs. Before that, I had never gotten past the first round. To do that, win a state championship, was a real good feeling,” Luna said. “I wanted to do it again with Pioneer. The stuff that I taught the guys was we always have to play hard no matter who we’re playing.”
The Diamondbacks blazed through District 31-5A competition with a 14-0 record, beating each opponent by 10 or more points. Then, it was time for the playoffs.
But before the postseason began, Luna had a talk with his dad. They discussed the blood, sweat, tears and sacrifice spent for the game of basketball.
“It was just knowing that if we lose, we’re going home, so I always had to give it my all. My dad really prepared me with that,” he said. “The talk we had before the Mercedes game, that really hit me, so I had to make sure I was playing at the highest level that I could play at.”
And that’s precisely what Luna did — played at his highest level.
In Pioneer’s first three playoff games this season, Luna scored 26 in an 85-57 win over Mercedes, 28 in a 88-57 win over Corpus Christi Miller, and 27 in a 71-58 third round win against Corpus Christi Veterans.
But he saved his best performance for last.
At the Class 5A Region IV Tournament in San Antonio against S.A. Harlan, Luna was unstoppable. Bringing the ball up against full court pressure, facing double-teams, box-and-ones, Harlan threw it all at the senior guard.
Luna, however, would not be denied. From knocking down open jumpers, to hitting contested 3-pointers over the outstretched arms of the defense, to knifing through the lane for layups at the basket, he was rolling on all cylinders.
Luna and the Diamondbacks fought back from a 14-point first half deficit and had a chance to win during the final seconds, but ultimately lost the game, ending Pioneer’s season and Luna’s high school career. But he had no reason to hang his head as he left everything on the court by scoring a career-high 40 points against Harlan.
“Honestly, I don’t know how I was doing that, I was just playing basketball. I was just putting the ball in the hoop, I was not thinking at all,” he said of his 40-point performance.
Sharyland Pioneer head coach Rene Gonzalez said having Luna on his team was like having a coach on the court.
“He’s very quiet, a great kid to be around with a great head on his shoulders, and he’s a great leader,” Gonzalez said of his senior guard. “He helped our team tremendously with his leadership skills and all his experience he had coming from Duncanville. But most of all, he’s a competitor.”
When he first joined Pioneer, Gonzalez challenged his newest player to a 3-point shooting contest. Luna won, of course. Just last week, Gonzalez texted his star player to set up The Monitor’s All-Area photoshoot. Luna was playing a basketball video game at the time, and told his coach if he wants to get beat in video games, they could do that too.
While there’s nothing funny about his game on the court, Luna and the rest of the Diamondbacks kept things loose in the locker room. Most of them grew up playing together on travel teams through elementary and junior high, so his senior season playing alongside day one friends was one he’ll never forget.
“The bus rides home were pretty fun. In the locker room before and after practice, we would always stay a little bit after just to hang out,” Luna said. “There was never a dull moment with those guys, we all liked having fun. I’m just happy that I got to experience it with the guys I grew up with.”
While his high school playing days are over, Luna recently accepted an offer to continue his basketball and academic career at Texas A&M-Kingsville. It’s another chance for Luna to prove he belongs.
“That was always the goal from the start when I was playing basketball. I always wanted to play college basketball,” he said. “When I got the Division II offer, I was excited and happy about it because I knew a Division II offer was still hard to get. Knowing that Kingsville wanted me to go play over there, it was an honor.”
Proving doubters wrong is nice, but it’s not what he plays for. Luna’s de... Click here to read full article
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