In a expanded field of 12 teams, Victoria East and Victoria West each went 3-1, while Edna ended the weekend 2-2.
Pflugerville Connally won the tournament, beating Brenham in the championship game.
òòò½ÊÓƵœWe really had some great teams here, we had some good basketball this weekend,òòò½ÊÓƵ West head coach Cody McDonald said. òòò½ÊÓƵœWhen the community starts to invest in something like this it will grow and this is the way we kind of show off and sell our city.òòò½ÊÓƵ
West was the one area team that won its pool and advanced to the gold bracket. The Warriors beat El Campo and Taft on Friday to advance to the semifinals.
The Warriors would fall to Connally in the semifinals, but would finish the weekend 3-1 after a win against Seguin.
òòò½ÊÓƵœComing into the weekend I wanted us to get better every game and I think we did that,òòò½ÊÓƵ McDonald said. òòò½ÊÓƵœWe improved every time we touched the floor, the chemistry was there, the way they played for each other was there and that to me means more than anything.òòò½ÊÓƵ
The highlight for West was the emergence of young players. West has three freshmen on the varsity roster this season òòò½ÊÓƵ” Matthew Cattan, Jamal Scott and Kamryn Flores.
Cattan and Scott each started the four tournament games, while Flores played major minutes off the bench. The trio of freshmen played a major role in the Warriorsòòò½ÊÓƵ™ victory over Seguin.
òòò½ÊÓƵœIt says a whole lot about their preparation to be ready to take advantage of the minutes they have,òòò½ÊÓƵ McDonald said. òòò½ÊÓƵœIt shows that theyòòò½ÊÓƵ™re bought into what we do and itòòò½ÊÓƵ™s a compliment to those guys and theyòòò½ÊÓƵ™re really starting to grow into varsity basketball players.òòò½ÊÓƵ
Eastòòò½ÊÓƵ™s goal entering the tournament was to re-establish its rhythm following a 2-0 start to District 22-5A play.
East went 1-1 Friday, beating Kingsville by 11 points before losing to eventual runners-up Brenham by nine. On Saturday, the Titans won the silver bracket in dominant fashion.
East beat Corpus Christi King by 11, leading by as many as 21 in the third quarter. The Titans would follow up that effort with a 60-37 victory over El Campo.
òòò½ÊÓƵœDefensively weòòò½ÊÓƵ™re looking really, really good,òòò½ÊÓƵ East head coach Ralph Almanza said. òòò½ÊÓƵœThe last two games we gave up nine and 11 in the first half, our offense doesnòòò½ÊÓƵ™t look real cohesive right now, but if we keep playing defense like that weòòò½ÊÓƵ™ll be able to stay in games.òòò½ÊÓƵ
The Titans face off will face off against No. 1 Fort Bend Marshall on Jan. 3.
òòò½ÊÓƵœWeòòò½ÊÓƵ™re peaking at the right time,òòò½ÊÓƵ Almanza said. òòò½ÊÓƵœDistrict started earlier this year, so we had to tinker with the timing and just try to get right and I feel like weòòò½ÊÓƵ™re hungry right now and weòòò½ÊÓƵ™re excited about what weòòò½ÊÓƵ™re able to do.òòò½ÊÓƵ
Perhaps no team gained more from tournament play than Class 3A No. 22 Edna.
The Cowboys had played just two games and practiced only three times before the tournament.
òòò½ÊÓƵœThis is the byproduct of being at a small school,òòò½ÊÓƵ Edna head coach Sheldon Moor said. òòò½ÊÓƵœWhen you have a good football team, the basketball team is waiting to play because theyòòò½ÊÓƵ™re all out on the turf playing.òòò½ÊÓƵ
Edna was far from a finished product, but did show flashes of its capability.
After falling down 17-2 against Corpus Christi King, the Cowboys came back to win 57-54 in the final game of pool play.
Despite the win, Edna played in the bronze bracket, based on a point-differential tiebreaker, after losing 55-47 to Seguin in its tournament opener.
Edna would fall to fellow Class 3A contender No. 23 Aransas Pass on Saturday morning before capturing a dominant win over Taft.
On Friday and Saturday the Cowboys played more games than the team had practiced together.
With the district schedule approaching, the Cowboys know they must be ready quickly.
òòò½ÊÓƵœWhen you want to mold something, youòòò½ÊÓƵ™ve got to put it into the kiln and melt it down first,òòò½ÊÓƵ Moor said. òòò½ÊÓƵœThatòòò½ÊÓƵ™s what weòòò½ÊÓƵ™re doing, weòòò½ÊÓƵ™re melting legs, weòòò½ÊÓƵ™re melting brains, weòòò½ÊÓƵ™re throwing a lot at them, but I want to see competitiveness and Iòòò½ÊÓƵ™m getting that.òòò½ÊÓƵ
