We’ve got your holiday stocking chocked full of goodies and not coal since everyone associated with Texas high school boys and girls basketball has been nice this past year. It is a time of reflection as well as a time of looking ahead, so shall we commence and do both?
A jolly congratulations is in order for the Dallas Academy Bulldogs girls basketball team. Academy, you might remember, was the reluctant newsmaker way back in January of this year when the team lost 100-0 in a game in which the winning coach was eventually dismissed amidst a hailstorm of debate about whether the score was run up.
Well, on Friday, the same Academy team defeated Johnson County, 34-33, for the school’s first win in eight years. This was not just any win and any celebration.
In a warming story written by Mark Dent of the Dallas Morning News, the team was met at a Schlotzsky’s after the game by half the boys team, who dogpiled the girls in celebration as soon as they got off the bus. Laughter was all around and undoubtedly a few tears of joy as well.
The game itself saw some miraculous plays, beginning with Lauren Oelke’s half-court shot that found the bottom of the net at the halftime buzzer. Oelke also notched 31 of the team’s 34 points, and her outburst was more than twice her career high. She nailed a free throw with under one minute to play for the final 34-33 lead.
After a defensive stop by Academy, the team dribbled and passed the ball until the long-awaited final buzzer rang and shouts of jubilation rang louder.
Said coach Deanna Civello: "That was the best minute they ever played."
Congratulations, Wayne Dickey
Congratulations are also in order to longtime coach Wayne Dickey, who recently picked up his 800th career win while leading San Antonio St. Gerard past The Winston School, 65-44. Dickey is the 22nd boys coach to hit the 800-win milestone in Texas high school basketball and accomplished the feat at a young 57 years of age.
Dickey, of course, is most often associated with San Antonio Sam Houston, where he won 751 games on the way to a record that now stands at 800-274. He led Sam Houston for 30 years and sent the team to four state tournaments and one championship. He is now in his third season at St. Gerard. Dickey is also second in career wins in the San Antonio area, trailing only Central Catholic coach Joe Cortez and his 823 victories.
File photo by Keith Owens
Courtney Hooper, Lincoln
Congratulations, Arlington Heights
OK, so we brought up Fort Worth Arlington Heights in last week’s column, but this bears a repeat. A fast glance at the Texas Association of Basketball Coaches/Tex Preps Basketball state rankings shows two undefeated teams among the top 25 in Class 4A boys play. One is No. 2 Dallas Lincoln, which sits at 13-0 and is no stranger to the rankings, nor the state tournament in Austin.
The Tigers are led by sensational junior LeBryan Nash, who has every school drooling for his services after he graduates next year from Lincoln. Look for Lincoln to make a long playoff run, and one can only imagine Nash and his mates facing Houston Yates in a Class 4A state championship.
But before we get to that point, let’s look at what is happening in the moment, and that moment now reflects that Arlington Heights is an unblemished 17-0 and has risen to No. 5 in the latest rankings.
A recent story remarked how around Heights, the deal was always that when football season ended the team basically waited for baseball season to start. Forget the sport called basketball that bridges football and baseball. Well, no more. The entire community is behind this upstart program under Gary Collier and, in addition to other teams in the area like Fort Worth Trimble Tech, it can no longer be assumed that a District 7-4A crown will just be given to Fort Worth Dunbar as in years past.
And now, a look at last week’s tournament results:
BOYS
Academy Sports Holiday Hoopfest: Marshall 46, Hallsville 39
Atlanta Tournament: Texarkana Liberty-Eylau 64, Atlanta 42
Bloomburg Wildcat Tournament: Bloomburg 70, McLeod 67 (OT)
C.E. Vail Tournament: Mission Veterans Memorial 68, Harlingen 64
City of Palms Classic: Weslaco 62, San Antonio Fox Tech 57 (OT)
Hawkins Tournament: Big Sandy Harmony 48, Gladewater Union Grove 39
Houston ISD Tournament: Houston Bellaire 57, Alief Elsik 55
Medina Tournament: Harper 46, Medina 41
Sabine Last Man Standing Tournament: Gladewater Sabine 61, Rusk 50
GIRLS
Bloomburg Wildcat Tournament: Queen City 51, Waskom 47
Grand Saline Tournament: Brownsboro 47, Hawkins 34
R.V. Baugus is editor and publisher of Tex Preps Basketball magazine and www.texprepsbasketball.com.