JT Keith
Anyone who knows basketball in this state knows the roar of The Pit. It is that loud, sunken concrete bowl in Albuquerque where high school kids go to see if they can survive the pressure and become legends. It is a place where memories stay with you for the rest of your life.
For Artesia High School standout Charlie Campbell IV, those memoirs of The Pit are real. They are the backdrop to the sweat, the miles, and the absolute pinnacle of wearing the orange and black.
On Monday, Campbell took the next big step in his journey, announcing that he is signing to play college basketball for Eastern New Mexico University.
The Greyhounds are getting a winner. But to understand why he is a winner, you have to look at the story behind the story. You have to go back to the hardwood floor in Albuquerque, right when the clock was ticking down to the absolute end.
There were only five seconds left in the 2025 Class 4A state championship game. The noise in the arena was deafening. In that exact moment, teammate Corbyn Dominguez looked over at Campbell, locked eyes, and said the words every kid in Artesia dreams of hearing: “We are about to be state champions.”
Five seconds later, the buzzer went off. The Bulldogs had their third state title, and a group of local kids had their names etched into history. It happened because they simply refused to lose.
That championship ring wasn’t luck. It was earned by a willingness to go against the best of the best. Campbell’s high school career was defined by those heavyweight matchups. He wanted to go against top-tier players and elite defenders because he knew that was how you get better. He never backed down from a challenge.
A lot of that physical and mental toughness came from the football field. In Artesia football, the starters and the best players went against each other every single day in practice. The ones went against the other ones. It was iron sharpening iron.
“The only way to get better is to go against the best on your team,” Campbell said. “We were not afraid to work hard.”
Those collisions, that raw physicality, and the requirement to show up early and give everything you have transferred directly to the basketball court. It gives you an edge over teams that only know the clean, non-contact style of play. When the fourth quarter comes, and the pressure is cooking inside The Pit, that football-bred toughness takes over.
Now, Campbell takes that exact pedigree to Portales. He joins an ENMU program led by head coach Daven Võ, coming off a stellar 26-6 season that took the Greyhounds to the NCAA Division II tournament.
For Campbell, it came down to a place that felt like home.
Artesia guard Charlie Campbell IV shoots a free throw in the state tournament at the Pit in Albuquerque.
“I just felt like ENMU had the morals and beliefs that I was raised with in Artesia,” Campbell said. “I enjoyed being there, and the coaches and players are cool, and I just want to go and show them I can help.”
He leaves Artesia as a two-time all-state selection, the 2025 Class 4A Player of the Year, and a member of the 1,000-point club. But the stats aren’t the real story. The real story is the blueprint he leaves behind—built on facing the toughest competition, trusting his teammates, and letting the lessons of the field carry him to championships on the basketball court.
jtkeith can be reached at 575-420-0061, or on X@JTKEITH1.