By R.V. Baugus, www.texprepsbasketball.com
Special to MaxPreps.com
The Cedar Hill boys knocked off Duncanville in a District 7-5A clash last Tuesday, 68-67, which may or may not be considered an upset since the Longhorns were ranked No. 2 in the state TABC/Tex Preps Basketball rankings, while high-profile Duncanville was No. 5.
For good measure, the No. 13 Cedar Hill girls made it a week to remember for the school’s fans on Friday with a 54-49 win over state No. 2 Irving MacArthur.
Those were the biggest storylines from around the state in a week in which all teams were fully engaged in district action. In fact, the girls have just three weeks remaining before the regular season concludes, which makes every game from this point forward crucial.
Cedar Hill got a jump on making the girls race one that will go to the wire. The team improved to 18-4, 5-1 with the win while knocking star Odyssey Sims and MacArthur down to 27-2, 5-1. BreAnna Dawkins led the Cedar Hill charge with 20 points, but it was the team’s defense that was the story as MacArthur was held to 22 points under the team’s average.
Meanwhile, the Longhorn boys had a nail-biter in their gym earlier in the week against Duncanville. The Panthers had two shots to win the game in the final six seconds, but both efforts came up dry. Cedar Hill appeared to have the game under control with a 68-58 lead with just 90 seconds to play, but resilient Duncanville charged back and forced a turnover with 23 seconds to go to set up shots for Shawn Williams and Perry Jones.
Panhandle Winning Streaks
Canyon and Amarillo Palo Duro hooked up in a key District 3-4A girls clash at the Palo Duro Activity Center with a pair of winning streaks on the line. Canyon, which moved up this year from Class 3A, boasted an 87-game district winning streak, while the Lady Dons had an impressive 37-game district winning streak of their own.
Make it 88 in a row for Canyon and goodbye to Palo Duro’s streak.
Canyon persevered, 49-46, coming back from seven down at halftime after an adjustment to slow down the Palo Duro penetration and transition game. Canyon upped its mark to 19-2, 5-0 while Palo Duro dropped to 17-6, 4-1.
All was not lost for Palo Duro, however, as the boys team steamrolled Canyon, 73-33, to improve its own district winning streak to 70 games.
That’s Entertainment
Houston Wheatley, which enjoyed a brief stay at No. 1 in Class 4A, stood at No. 7 going into a district contest against Houston Washington. Wheatley entered at 21-3 while Washington came in at 10-12. When the tired scoreboard operator finally got to call it a night, the final score showed Washington with a huge 105-104 overtime upset win.
Wheatley led 50-39 at halftime, but Washington chipped away to go into the final period trailing, 70-64. Hyjii Thomas was on fire and netted 41 points in 32 minutes of action to lead the attack.
Coaching Milestones
While the Cedar Hill boys got the best of Duncanville, the Pantherettes of Duncanville handled the Cedar Hill girls, 50-44. Congratulations to Duncanville coach Cathy Self-Morgan, who earned her 800th career win after that game.
Congratulations are also in order for Howe’s Derek Lands, who earned career win No. 200 as varsity girls basketball coach.
Billy Johnson Steps Down at Brazosport
Freeport Brazosport girls coach Billy Johnson decided to step down as coach. The third-year coach was 36-33 at the time of his resignation. Varsity assistant Diana Davis has been named interim coach of the Lady Ships. Johnson said he is having some health issues and that the team would be better served by having a coach who could always be available and present.
NCAA Declares Seventh Graders “Prospects”
Bowing to the younger-and-younger movement that permeates college basketball recruiting, the NCAA has said that seventh graders are now officially classified as prospects.
The NCAA voted to change the definition of a prospect from ninth grade to seventh grade for men’s basketball only to try and stem a trend in which some college coaches were working at private, elite camps and clinics for seventh and eighth graders.
Joe D’Antonio, chairman of the 31-member Division I Legislative Council, which approved the change, said that the measure is scary because it leads to the question of where the madness stops – top player entering the first grade?
Is this really good for the kid (and that’s what they are) who ascends to a top ranking? If it isn’t already here, the day of a sixth-grader having his own entourage around is close at hand. Kids should be able to enjoy their lives as just that—kids. There is plenty of time to deal with the harsh realities that follow in adulthood.
R.V. Baugus is the Publisher of Tex Preps Basketball magazine and www.texprepsbasketball.com.
