District play kicks into gear as high school tournaments come to a conclusion.
Are you ready for some basketball? I said, are you ready for some intense, high-energy district basketball? 
Harrison Wagner, Arlington Heights
File photo by Keith Owens
Now that the calendar has flipped to 2010, that means that for the most part the mind-boggling number of tournaments has concluded and teams can now get down to the nitty-gritty of district play, where every game counts on the way to a postseason berth.
On the boys ledger, District 7-4A and the Fort Worth Independent School District saw a pairing of upstart Arlington Heights against blueblood Dunbar. Was Heights’ 19-0 start a smoke screen that Dunbar would reveal? Or was Heights the real deal that would now find itself in the position of being the hunted rather than as a hunter?
Better yet, how many times has it been uttered that Arlington Heights would have to stifle a Dunbar upset bid? Well, this was one of those times, and the Yellowjackets passed the test with a thrilling 66-62 win. Actually, holiday tournament action broke up four wins that Arlington Heights had already accumulated in district play, so Gary Collier’s club is now 5-0 in league play.
A 13-point fourth-quarter lead was chiseled down but the new kids on the block were able to hang on. Marquis Jackson had a game-high 22 points off the bench while Willie Byrd chipped in 17. Dunbar’s Flying Wildcats fell to an uncharacteristic 4-11, 2-3.
Staying in the Metroplex but turning to the girls side, District 7-5A saw a much-anticipated contest between another blueblood in Duncanville and relative newcomer Irving MacArthur. The Cardinals boast Baylor signee Odyssey Sims as well as sensational sophomore Alexis Jones, who had 32 points to lead her team to a 69-56 win.
Both clubs entered the game unbeaten and MacArthur improved to 25-0 while Duncanville stands at 23-1. The visiting Pantherettes held a 35-30 lead at halftime despite a 21-point outburst from Jones, but withered in the third quarter as MacArthur took over with an 18-8 surge. Sims took over the scoring slack for the winners in the second half with 25 of her 27 points.
But we haven’t forgotten the tournaments that took place last week, either, and following are championship final results from those contests around the state.
BOYS
Alley Hoop Tournament: Iraan 77, Kermit 58
Border Olympics Tournament: Laredo United 61, Laredo Alexander 53
Brazosport ISD Holiday Classic: Corpus Christi Pope John Paul II 67, Freeport Brazosport 59
Byron Johnston Holiday Classic: El Paso Montwood 34, Temple 32
Calallen Christmas Classic: Fort Bend Elkins 76, Corpus Christi West Oso 71
Cameron Christmas Classic: Cameron Yoe 56, Brenham 46
Dallas ISD Coca-Cola Tournament: Lancaster 77, Dallas Woodrow Wilson 54
Dan Noll Christmas Classic: Daingerfield 61, White Oak 59
East Chambers Tournament: New Waverly 71, Orangefield 33
Eula Holiday Classic: Clyde 47, Olney 31
Falfurrias Christmas Shootout: Banquete 54, Orange Grove 52
Fibermax Caprock Ambucs Holiday Classic: Red Division—Wall 62, Lubbock Christian 58
Fort Worth ISD Coca-Cola Classic: Arlington Bowie 85, Fort Worth Southwest 75
Gatesville Holiday Tournament: Bastrop 55, Liberty Hill 53
Godley Tournament: Fort Worth Nolan 43, Godley 40
Gulf Coast Classic: Houston C.E. King 65, Mont Belvieu Barbers Hill 60
Hallettsville Tournament: Hallettsville 85, Gonzales 57
James Gamble Classic: Port Arthur Memorial 51, La Marque 49
Kiwanis Classic: Kerens 81, Italy 65
Leonard Holiday Tournament: Itasca 51, Leonard 48
Littlefield Wildcat Classic: Littlefield 53, Anton 50
M.T. Rice Tournament: Austin Bowie 57, Killeen Harker Heights 38
Mary Tatum Holiday Classic: Big Lake Reagan County 55, Colorado City 51
Mineral Wells Tournament: Keller Fossil Ridge 50, Mineral Wells 49
Rosebud-Lott Tournament: Milano 56, Rosebud-Lott 42
Sherman Holiday Invitational: 5A/4A—San Antonio Wagner 94, Sherman 91 (2OT); 3A/2A/1A—Crandall 40, Melissa 37
Sinton Rotary Classic: Rockport-Fulton 67, Hondo 64
T-Mobile Invitational: Houston Yates 108, Butler (Ala.) 77
Thorndale Tournament: Mumford 57, Thorndale 42
Underwood’s Christmas Classic Division II: Bangs 62, Palestine Westwood 43
Viking Invitational: Austin Akins 68, Bryan 57
Wagstaff Holiday Classic: Gold Bracket—Tyler John Tyler 75, Jacksonville 45; Apache Bracket—Bullard Brook Hill 46, Bullard 43
Weslaco East Christmas Classic: Weslaco East 83, Brownsville Lopez 63
Whataburger Tournament: Orange Division—Flower Mound Marcus 45, Long Beach Poly (Calif.) 40; Blue Division—Cleveland 63, Argyle 48
GIRLS
Alley Hoop Tournament: Barksdale Nueces Canyon 58, Fort Stockton 22
Alvin Noon Lions Club Holiday Classic: Channelview 42, Angleton 29
BISD Holiday Classic: Bay City 48, Clute Brazoswood 38
Border Olympics Tournament: Alice 72, Laredo Alexander 54
Boswell Holiday Invitational: Keller Fossil Ridge 58, Weatherford 34
Breckenridge Lions Club Classic: Lovington (N.M.) 45, Amarillo Caprock 40
Bush’s Chicken Holiday Classic: Copperas Cove 65, Killeen 57
Byron Johnston Holiday Classic: Midland 63, Amarillo Tascosa 49
Chapel Hill Tournament: Daingerfield 57, Mount Pleasant Chapel Hill 38
Dallas ISD Coca-Cola Tournament: Irving MacArthur 70, West Mesquite 50
EPISD Holiday Tournament: El Paso Chapin 41, El Paso Coronado 40
Eula Holiday Classic: Cisco 69, Smyer 49
Fibermax Caprock Ambucs Holiday Classic: Green Division—Lubbock Coronado 70, Shallowater 57; Red Division—Sudan 53, Nocona 36
G.M. Blackman Tournament: Del Valle 44, Buda Hays Consolidated 40
Gadsden (N.M.) Tournament: El Paso Eastwood 37, El Paso Bel Air 30
Gatesville Tournament: Brownwood 60, McGregor 50
Grady Tournament: Stanton 66, Roscoe Highland 30
Gulf Coast Classic: League City Clear Springs 53, Mont Belvieu Barbers Hill 40
Jostens Holiday Classic: Navasota 58, Harlingen 33
Kaufman Holiday Tournament: Mesquite Poteet 54, Paris 31
Kiwanis Classic: Kerens 56, Teague 41
Leonard Holiday Tournament: Emory Rains 37, Farmersville 29
Littlefield Wildcat Classic: Anton 49, Lockney 48
M.T. Rice Tournament: Hewitt Midway 60, Corpus Christi King 36
Martin’s Mill Tournament: Ben Wheeler Martin’s Mill 40, Hubbard 38
Mary Tatum Holiday Classic: Odessa Permian 42, Ballinger 38
McDonald’s All-Star Invitational: Bryan 62, Harrison Central (Miss.) 51
Meredith Hatch Memorial Mansfield Invitational: Mansfield Timberview 49, Canyon 47
NCTC Tournament: Howe 52, Callisburg 32
Oakridge Classic: Oakridge 49, Cedar Hill Trinity 34
Palacios Shark Tournament: Columbia 51, Van Vleck 44
Parish Episcopal Holiday Classic: Longview 57, St. Mary’s Dominica (La.) 46
Sandra Meadows Classic: Duncanville 38, Euless Trinity 35
Sherman Holiday Invitational: 5A/4A—Edmond North (Okla.) 61, Van Buren (Ark.) 42; 3A/2A/1A—Pittsburg 52, Whitesboro 44
Sinton Rotary Classic: Hallettsville 44, Corpus Christi John Paul II 40
Thorndale Tournament: Thorndale 62, Franklin 39
Trenton Tournament: Boyd 54, Valley View 50
Union Square Lady Bulldog Christmas Classic: Burkburnett 82, Mineral Wells 68
Whataburger Tournament: Blue Division—Brock 33, Peaster 31
R.V. Baugus is editor and publisher of Tex Preps Basketball magazine and www.texprepsbasketball.com.
