GALVESTON — Landry’s employees and their families put Galveston Island Historic Pleasure Pier workers to the test Sunday as they prepare for the official opening.
We'll be unveiling our All-County boys and girls basketball selections in Sunday's Daily News sports section, but as a special sneak peek, here is the Galveston County Play of the Year.
In what became another epic showdown in the Clash of the Causeway series, Ball High freshman Greg Rollins delivered a resounding dunk over a La Marque defender to inspire the Tors in a dramatic comeback. They trailed by 15 points at the time of the dunk, which didn't even count because the referee called an offensive foul, but nevertheless, Ball High fought back and won in a triple-overtime thriller.
Join us today at 6:30 p.m. for a live chat as Clear Springs and Alief Elsik compete in the regional tournament in Aldine. The Lady Chargers already defeated Elsik earlier this season in an overtime thriller, and that was without star leading scorer sophomore Brooke McCarty. If the Lady Chargers play their usual game, they'll be a shoe-in for Saturday's regional final.
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Join us today at 4:45 p.m. for a live chat as Clear Falls and Barbers Hill compete in the regional tournament in Aldine. It's hard to believe the Lady Knights have made it this far considering it's the first year that any of the girls have competed in varsity competition. In the regional semifinal, they've got a daunting opponent in Barbers Hill, which has a 28-game winning streak against Class 4A challengers, largely because of their 6-foot-4-inch center.
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The Clear Falls Lady Knights or the Clear Springs Lady Chargers girls basketball teams could take us to Austin in a few weeks if they survive this weekend’s regional tournament in Aldine.
Clear Falls and Clear Springs will play in the Region III-4A and Region III-5A tournaments, respectively, beginning with the semifinal round this evening. Clear Falls begins at 5 p.m. against Barbers Hill and Clear Springs plays at 6:30 p.m. against Alief Elsik.
If you can’t make the game, follow our play-by-play updates in the live chat, which will begin here in 'From the Sidelines' at 4:45 p.m.
The Texas City boys basketball team has made amazing strides so far this season.
I’m not sure who should get all the credit, but I think it should certainly start with first-year coach Chris Mason. He built a dynasty at La Porte, and he saw an opportunity to do the same at Texas City when not many people wanted the task.
After all, they were 4-27 last season and have had just one winning season in the last seven years. They’ve had just two 10-win seasons in that stretch, and Mason might achieve that by New Year’s Eve.
Mason can’t take all the credit as there are a few talented players on the team, but it’s mostly the same team that won two District 24-4A games last season except they lost their two leading scorers to graduation. By the way, they’re already 2-0 in district play, matching last season’s success just a week in.
Other candidates for most improved team:
Dickinson
The Gators have won about the same amount of games to this point as last year, but they’re on the tipping point where Mike Tucker’s program is poised to take off. I think they’re a lock to win more than the two district games they won last year.
Ball High
The girls, that is. The Lady Tors have a solid offense, and if the defense can turn things around, they’re a legitimate playoff bubble team.
Santa Fe
Under first-year coach Brandon Baker, the Indians finally have the ball rolling. They’ve got a force in senior center Kyle Kadlecek, and the guards like Marc Cram and Jeff Riley are starting to knock down shots.
AUSTIN — The La Marque Cougars trailed most of the afternoon and despite a couple of strong runs cold not overcome the Dallas Kimball Knights in the 4A boys basketball championship game Saturday. Dallas Kimball took the crown after a 78-64 victory.
The state championship chat was sponsored by Ron Hoover RV in La Marque.
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No. 9 La Marque takes on fourth-ranked Arlington Heights in tonight's state semifinal. Being that these Cougars lost to (and defeated) the Friendswood Mustangs and the Ball High Tors earlier this season, this is a game that interests most of Galveston County.
Join our in-game chat for live coverage. The chat room opens at 6 p.m. Tip off is at 7 p.m. at the Frank Erwin Center near the state capitol in Austin. Participate in polls and ask questions. Fox Sports Houston will televise and webcast the state games.
Tonight's chat is sponsored by Ron Hoover RV in La Marque.
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With the victory, the Cougars will play in their first state basketball tournament on Thursday at 7 p.m. when they face Fort Worth Arlington Heights in the Erwin Center in Austin.
Here's the video of the Cougars celebrating their first regional title, including Julien Lewis' game-changing 3-pointer at the halftime buzzer, which gave the Cougars their first lead.
Join us today at 5:30 p.m. for a live chat from the boy's high school basketball regional finals. Jordan Godwin will be online from the Merrell Center in Katy. Tipoff between Ball High and La Marque will be at 6 p.m.
Update: La Marque wins 58-56 in a game that went down to the wire. The winner goes to Austin where the next game will be played Thursday.
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Join us today at 5:30 p.m. for a live chat from the boy's high school basketball regional semi-finals. Jordan Godwin will be online from the Merrell Center in Katy. Tipoff between Ball High and Nederland will be at 6 p.m., followed by La Marque and Kingwood Park at 7:30 p.m.
Update: Ball defeats Nederland, 71-48. La Marque defeats Kingwood Park, 59-50. Ball High and La Marque now advance to the regional finals Saturday night at 6 p.m. Join us again for live coverage!
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By now, it’s starting to look inevitable. After down-to-the-wire victories on Wednesday night, Ball High and La Marque are just one win away from facing each other in the regional final for a third edition of the Clash of the Causeway series.
It’s the secret that everyone who has seen a bracket knows, but the event that no one wants to say aloud: Ball and La Marque are destined to play each other in the regional final on Saturday. That game would decide who gets to go to next weekend’s state tournament in Austin and would arguably be the biggest basketball game in Galveston County history.
La Marque’s Quincy Jones, left, heads for the hoop Wednesday against Terry in a regional quarterfinal game at Alvin High School. Photo by Michael Durisseau
On Friday night, fifth-ranked Ball takes on No. 18 Nederland (31-4). Tipoff is set for 6 p.m. at the Katy ISD Merrell Center. Only 750 pre-sale tickets are available for purchase today at the Galveston ISD athletic office inside Ball High School until 5 p.m. and Friday from 8:30 a.m. until noon.
No. 9 La Marque faces unranked Kingwood Park (26-12) immediately following Ball’s game at 7:30 p.m. Friday night.
Tickets are also available online at merrellcenter.org. For people buying tickets at the Merrell Center front office, sales start at 4 p.m. Friday and 3 p.m. Saturday. It is important to know that one single ticket allows fans to watch both games on Friday night, and they won’t kick people out after Ball plays.
And being that the Merrell Center isn’t a huge venue and it’s 80 miles from Galveston, I know that plenty of you won’t be able to make the games.
The Daily News will have live coverage here in From the Sidelines for Friday night’s games and Saturday’s games (if Ball and La Marque advance). The chat room will open around 5:30 p.m. Friday night and Saturday night for the 6 p.m. regional final tipoff.
Being that it’s such a long trek and fan support can be so powerful in providing momentum to the teams, I’m curious to see which community will show up and support their teams.
Both La Marque and Galveston have been taken under by the basketball playoff fever, and both sides feel this is a special year for their teams, but one side has been more supportive along the way. What do you think? Will we see more navy or purple in the stands of the Merrell Center?
Join us Saturday, February 12, at 7 p.m. for a live chat from the University of Houston's Hofheinz Pavilion as La Marque and Ball compete in a Clash of the Causeway rematch. The sports staff will provide updates, play-by-play, analysis and discussion. Coverage starts at 7 p.m. with the tipoff slated for 7:30 p.m. The chat is sponsored by Papa's Pizza and Precision Tint.
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With the boys basketball Clash of the Causeway rematch set for Saturday, Feb. 12, at the Hofheinz Pavilion, people all over Galveston County are buzzing about the game.
The Ball High Tors won the first round 81-76 in a cram-packed Phillips Field House in Pasadena, but the La Marque Cougars are hungry for redemption. Ball is undefeated in district and another victory over La Marque would likely seal the district title up.
Tickets for the 7:30 p.m. game are selling fast. Fans can buy them at the Galveston school district or La Marque school district athletic offices or order tickets online.
The Daily News will have live coverage here in From the Sidelines Saturday night. The chat room will open around 7 p.m.
The much anticipated boys basketball rematch between the Ball High Tornadoes and the La Marque Cougars will be played in the University of Houston’s Hofheinz Pavilion, school officials announced Tuesday.
The UH men’s basketball team takes on Tulane at 4 p.m. earlier that afternoon. But the big news is that Ball High athletic director Sandra Howell and other school officials were able to land the Hofheinz Pavilion, the legendary home of Phi Slama Jama.
The location of the first matchup, Pasadena’s Phillips Field House, held roughly 2,500 rowdy fans, and tickets sold out within 30 hours. Officials went with the larger Hofheinz Pavilion, which holds 8,500. Will Hofheinz sell out as well?
What can we expect in the rematch? The Tors bumped up to No. 3, while La Marque dropped to No. 4 after the outcome of the first game. Who will win the second?
Join us on Martin Luther King Jr. Day in a live chat from Pasadena as top-ranked La Marque and No. 5 Ball battle in one of the most anticipated boys basketball games in recent memory. Tickets are sold out. The sports staff will provide updates, play-by-play, analysis and discussion. Coverage starts at 6:30 p.m. with the tipoff slated for 7 p.m. Tonight's chat is sponsored by Coastal Community FCU.
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Armageddon Day is fast approaching in Galveston County boys hoops.
No. 1 in the Texas Association of Basketball Coaches Class 4A Poll La Marque will take on No. 5 Ball High in the most-anticipated hoops match in recent memory. The two rivals meet for the first time for a district match in nearly 20 years, and perhaps for the first time ever when both have legitimate state championship aspirations.
Now, it's time to let the debate begin. Ball is 21-2 with three players who have Division I scholarships. La Marque is 22-1 with University of Texas commit Julien Lewis along with a great supporting cast.
La Marque and Ball High boys hoops fans got their wish.
The most anticipated basketball Clash of the Causeway in recent memory will move to a neutral site and take place on a holiday to accommodate more spectators wishing to see two of the best teams in the state.
No. 1 in the Texas Coaches Association of Basketball Coaches Class 4A Poll La Marque will face No. 5 Ball at Phillips Gymnasium at 2906 Dabney in Pasadena on Martin Luther King Day, Jan. 17. It will be a holiday classic of sorts between two fierce rivals who both have realistic state tournament hopes and are in the same district for the first time in nearly 20 years.
The original game was scheduled for Jan. 18 at La Marque.
“It’s going to be fun,” Ball High coach Jerald Temple said. “A lot of people have been wanted this. It’s great for the fans and the community, a way to celebrate basketball.”
The main reason for the location change is to include more fans. Ball High’s gym holds just about 1,000 while La Marque can fit about 1,500.
Phillips Field House holds more than 2,500 people, doubling the amount of fans that can see the game. Other venues were discussed such as the Toyota Center and Hofheinz Pavillion, but ultimately deemed too expensive.
“We want to give as much access as possible,” Galveston ISD athletic director Sandra Howell said. “It should be a great experience at a neutral site with traveling — just like a playoff game.”
Each school will be splitting the number of available tickets 50/50 and will pre-sale tickets at their respective athletic departments. Absolutely NO PASSES of any kind will be accepted for the game.
Tickets ($8 adult, $5 student) will be sold at La Marque and Galveston athletic departments and go on Jan. 10 beginning at 9 a.m.
It's been a week since the boys basketball season started. Some things, we knew and expected. Other things, well, that's why they play the games.
La Marque clearly looks like the team to beat, even if it doesn't have the No. 1 ranking in the state, and the Cougars have a firm grasp on that spot. The Tors come in at No. 2. That might upset some people, but, strength of schedule and the way La Marque is playing provides clear separation. For now.
The biggest surprise of the year is Santa Fe. The Indians are off to a 3-0 start with a new head coach. They jumped all the way from last to No. 3. Can they hold onto it? We'll see.
Here's this week's power poll. Feel free to agree or disagree. Comments are appreciated.
1. La Marque (4-0) — Despite what the state polls say, there's no team playing better basketball in the state right now. The Cougars beat the No. 2, No. 4, and No. 14 teams in the state in Class 5A within the span of a week by a combined 61 points. Wow. La Marque is clearly playing with a chip on its shoulders. Their defense has been superb and the offense great. Julien Lewis has scored 40 points twice and is a man among boys right now. DeQuintin Greer is becoming a star and Quevin Cams is providing a strong inside presence. Oh yeah, and the Cougars are still missing three players because of football. No team in the county is in the same ballpark with La Marque right now.
2. Ball (5-0) — The Tors have been good, but not great. That's why they're still behind rival La Marque, even if they do have the No. 1 ranking in the state. Ball certainly has the potential to be great. The defense needs to pick it up a notch and the offense has to stay away from settling for jump shots. It will be interesting to see how the Tors respond as the schedule gets a bit tougher. Point guard Dedrick Archie, if approved by the UIL, could also be back this week.
3. Santa Fe (3-0) — How bout those Indians. After winning just eight games a year ago, new coach Chris Hairfield has Santa Fe undefeated and already at three wins. The Indians aren't flashy, but they play fundamentally sound and smart basketball. It will be interesting to see how Santa Fe handles the expectations and what happens when the schedule gets tougher. But this is as good as the Indians have looked in a long time.
4. Clear Creek (4-2) — After a quick start, the Wildcats dropped two of their next three. Granted both losses came to strong 5A programs, but Creek has high hopes this season of a district title, so I expect them to beat some of those teams. I think they would agree. While the drop in the rankings might be a bit harsh — and their talent is better than a No. 4 ranking — the Wildcats have to play better to stay among the top three.
5. Clear Springs (2-1) — Springs' first three games have offered some good and some bad. I expect that, as the team works in a slew of new players, that we'll see more good in the future. The addition of some football players will help. Teris Bourgeois has been as good as advertised. The key will be developing other consistent scorers and staying committed to defense.
6. Friendswood (2-2) — With a new coach and having graduated their top two scorers, this is about as good a start as Friendswood could hope for. There are just so many good teams in the county. Coach Jeff Keener has the Mustangs playing hard and competitively. He also has them running a bit more than usual. It will be interesting to see how the season progresses. There's a lot to like about Friendswood — its defense, toughness and outside shooting — but the question remains about a guy who can create his own shot. Nolan Harvey could be the answer.
7. Dickinson (3-4) — With only two players with varsity experience, Dickinson got off to a nice start. Especially considering the tough schedule. But the Gators still have some work. They lack a consistent go-to guy and the defense is shaky at best. This is a team that is hard working and feisty so it should improve.
8. Hitchcock (1-3) — Coach Steve Adamson called this a transition year, and that's what it's looking like for the Bulldogs. There's some talent there, especially with Craig Hart and Nathan Jones, but they did graduate their top six scorers. Hitchcock will keep being competitive with its pressure defense and chaotic style. The real challenge remains on offense.
9. Texas City (0-4) — This is going to be a tough year for the Stings. Outside of Bervick Briscoe, they just don't have a lot of talent. Texas City has been outscored by 85 points in four games.
Well, the much-anticipated boys hoops season is here. And boy is it exciting.
Galveston County features three state-ranked teams, including the No. 1 (Ball High) and No. 3 (La Marque) teams in Class 4A. There are only two other greater Houston area teams in the top 20 in that classification. Clear Creek comes in at No. 25 in the Class 5A poll.
There are also eight players who have or could sign Division I college offers by the end of the season, which makes this the deepest senior class in some time.
All of this makes 2010-11 season a big candidate for the county ends its state tournament drought. It's been six years since any team reached Austin, and more than 25 since a team in 4A or 5A did so.
But now it's my turn to rank the teams. I've spent a lot of time talking with coaches and I've seen most of the teams practice. Here's my poll, and feel free to disagree or comment below.
1. La Marque (0-0) — This is going to anger a lot of Ball High fans. And they have a legitimate complaint. But La Marque, to be frank, is the defending Region III-4A Finalist. They've have a roster of players that have been to the postseason and WON there. This is a proven, veteran team that has won four straight district titles and not lost a district home game in three years. The Cougars return seven letterman and three starters. Julien Lewis can do anything on the court and Quevin Cams is one of the most underrated players. Darrian Provost Johnson can shoot. Watch out for DeQuintin Greer, a long and lanky wing, to have a breakout year. The main question for the Cougars will be to replace the leadership of departed captains Jordan Dotson and Wesley Henderson. I think they can. They looked very hungry and motivated in practice.
2. Ball (0-0) — The Tors are arguably the most talented team. There's not a better 1-2 punch in the county than Mike Evans and Terran Petteway. Both can drive, pass, shoot or post-up. Add Dedrick Archie (Dickinson transfer) to the mix and the Tors have three Division I recruits on the floor. Yet Ball also has some new faces. The Tors lost three starters. They are also working in a couple of transfers and coach Jerald Temple's defensive scheme is demanding and tough. And while Ball has won the last three District 24-5A titles, it has translated into zero playoff teams. So Ball has potential to be great. But the Tors are going to have to prove they can win when it matters and that they can mesh together as a team.
3. Clear Creek (0-0) — This is a really exciting team. Creek returns four starters from last year's squad that finished second in 24-5A and ended a two-year playoff drought. The Wildcats were rewarded with the No. 25 ranking. This team has a lot of strengths and not a glaring weakness. It has height with 6-5 Dustin Hobaugh (HBU commit) and 6-6 Devin Caskey. It has a go-to guy in Tre Webb who nearly averaged a double-double last year. Webb could get a triple-double this year as he plays a point-forward and creates a myriad of matchup problems. The real question for Creek is can it hang with super athletic teams.
4. Clear Springs (0-0) — The Chargers are flying under the radar right now, but don't sleep on them. Yes they lost 6-7 post, leading rebounder and scorer Anthony Horton, but Teris Bourgeois is committed to Central Connecticut and he has gotten even better this year. Expect a breakout year for Bourgeois. The challenge for the Chargers will be the surrounding parts. They only return three other letterman, depending if they get some reinforcements from football.
5. Friendswood (0-0) — With a new coach and losing their top scorer and leading rebounder, there are a lot of reasons to be down on the Mustangs. But they do have nine returners and eight seniors. That experience will go a long way and make Friendswood competitive. Watch out for Nolan Harvey.
6. Hitchcock (0-0) — Yes, I am including Hitchcock in this poll. Though in Class 2A, the Bulldogs play a tough schedule against 4A and 5A teams. They've also been to two straight region semifinals. Still, the Bulldogs will try to reload. They lost their top six players. Nathan Jones and Craig Hart, though, played significantly last year. And Hitchcock always finds a way to get into the playoffs and make a run.
7. Dickinson (0-1) — Dickinson returns just two players from last year and no starters. That's a lot of work to make up in a short amount of time. Still, coach Mike Tucker believes his team will compete for a playoff spot. He calls them scrappy and unselfish. If the Gators are going to back up their coach, Eric Owens will have to come through and become a big-time player. He has the capability.
8. Texas City (0-0) — The Stings are young. Coach Bob Emmerson called this a rebuilding year. Texas City lost their top two players and really don't have a go-to guy. Only two players got significant varsity experience last year. Emmerson said the team is still looking for its strength.
9. Santa Fe (0-0) — The Indians have a new coach and perhaps that'll change things. But it's going to take some time. The players will have to learn a new system and playbook. Santa Fe has not been to the playoffs since 1996 — the longest drought in the county — and it's going to be hard to change that. The Indians will need to be patient offensively and play tough defense.
It's the high school boys basketball match-up we have all been waiting for — No. 1 Houston Yates vs. No. 3 La Marque.
La Marque is trying to reach its first state tournament in school history. Only thing standing in the Cougars way is the No. 1 team in the state.
Can't make it to the game? Or maybe you or one of the thousand that is here but can't get into the sold-out building. In either case, you can follow me on Twitter for updates throughout the contest.
The La Marque Lady Cougars are playing for their first trip to the girls state basketball tournament. You can follow live updates from me at the Campbell Center here: joshuabuckley @ Twitter
There are four Galveston County schools still competing in the University Interscholastic League girls basketball playoffs after the first round.
Clear Springs, La Marque and Friendswood all advance to the area round with victories earlier this week. Hitchcock had a first-round bye after winning its district.
Here is a look at the area round match-ups for those four schools.
Class 5A Clear Springs vs. North Shore • When: 6 p.m. Thursday • Where: Pasadena ISD’s Phillips Field House • Outlook: For the second straight season, Springs (26-7) gets a second-round match-up against Region III-5A power North Shore (27-4). North Shore isn’t as strong as it was last year and Springs is improved. However, the Lady Chargers still might not have enough to beat the 10th ranked team in the state. • Buckley’s Prediction: North Shore by seven.
Class 4A Friendswood vs. Houston Worthing • When: 6 p.m. Friday • Where: Manvel High School • Outlook: Worthing (23-3) is ranked 20th in the state, but it’s also had a pretty easy schedule. In late December, Worthing played Pearland Dawson and won by just five points. Friendswood (26-5) dominated Dawson in district play. That bodes well for the Lady Mustangs’ chances. The individual match-up between Worthing’s Jenzel Nash and Friendswood’s Annalisa Hall should be fun to watch. • Buckley’s Prediction: Friendswood by four.
La Marque vs. Houston Wheatley • When: 7:30 p.m. Friday • Where: Manvel High School • Outlook: Much like Worthing, Wheatley (23-3) built up a nice record on an easy schedule. La Marque (24-8) has the athleticism to take the HISD schools head on. Wheatley probably hasn’t seen a post player as good as La Marque’s Jaleesa Allen, either. • Buckley’s Prediction: La Marque by 11.
Class 2A Hitchcock vs. Santa Rosa • When: 8 p.m. Friday • Where: Cuero High School • Outlook: Hitchcock (28-7) begins its trek to return to the regional tournament against the runners-up from District 32-2A. The 13th ranked Lady Bulldogs are hungry, and with Jasamine Beard and Karissa Garner leading the way, will be tough to stop in this match-up. • Buckley’s Prediction: Hitchcock by 13.
The bi-district girls basketball playoff match-ups have been set. Here is a quick glance of the first round contests.
Class 5A Clear Creek vs. Fort Bend Elkins • When: 7:30 p.m. Tuesday • Where: Pasadena ISD's Phillips Field House ª First glance: Creek (26-6, 13-1) is looking for its first playoff win under head coach Jana Williams, and this season may be its best opportunity. As the District 24-5A champs, the Lady Wildcats get to face the No. 4 seed from the tough Fort Bend district. However, Elkins (19-9, 10-3) runs a tough press defense that still could give Creek fits.
Clear Springs vs. Fort Bend Marshall • When: 6 p.m. Monday • Where: Manvel High School • First glance: Springs (25-7, 12-2) won the school's first athletic postseason contest last season by beating a Fort Bend school. The Lady Chargers have a balanced, athletic squad to hang with Marshall (19-8, 10-3), which should result in another nail-biting finish.
Dickinson vs. Fort Bend Hightower • When: 7:30 p.m. Monday • Where: Manvel High School • First glance: Dickinson (17-11, 8-6) returns to the playoffs after missing last season, but has a brutal first-round match-up against the No. 6 team in the state. Hightower (29-2, 12-1) is one of the favorites to win Region III, meaning the Lady Gators have their work cut out for them.
Class 4A La Marque vs. El Campo • When: 6:30 p.m. Monday • Where: Stafford High School • First glance: By winning District 24-4A, La Marque (23-8, 13-1) ended up with a fairly easy first-round match-up. While El Campo (9-10, 3-3) is athletic, it hasn't shown it can compete against a talented team like the Lady Cougars.
Friendswood vs. Bay City • When: 7 p.m. Tuesday • Where: Brazoswood High School • First glance: Friendswood (25-5, 11-3) narrowly missed a share of the district title, but as a result of Tuesday's loss, ends up avoiding a potential second round match-up with undefeated Yates. The Lady Mustangs face a Bay City (20-9, 6-2) squad in the first round that actually finished as co-District 23-4A champs, but took the second seed rather than play for the No. 1 spot.
Class 2A Hitchcock • Hitchcock has a first round bye. It will face the winner of Santa Rosa vs. Freer in the second round.
With Sunday's sports section entirely devoted to the all-county football team, I'll take a brief moment here to recap two important boys games on Saturday. Both Ball and Dickinson won, gaining a little momentum before the Christmas break
Ball 68, Fort Bend Dulles 66
Ball held of No. 23 Fort Bend Dulles, barely, in what could be a playoff preview. Marcus Ruiz hit two free throws with just under a minute remaining to put Ball ahead by two and the Tors defense didn't allow another basket.
The Ball defense really carried the team on Saturday, forcing 21 turnovers. The Vikings average just seven a game. By comparison, the Tors committed just 10 turnovers of their own.
Terran Petteway led the Tors with 21. Michael Evans and Josh Miller each had nine. It was a close game throughout as neither team led by more than six points.
Ball (10-3) has now won seven straight. This was its first win over a ranked opponent.
Dickinson 79, Angleton 67
The Gators closed the third quarter with a 29-10 run to get by the Wildcats. Dickinson erased a 10-point deficit in the process.
The two Gator guards -- Kenny Harris and Dedrick Archie -- were lethal. Harris scored 25 points and dished out eight assists. Archie had 21 points, four steals and five assists. Ivery Mark added 10 points and Sam Kinlaw scored 10 and grabbed 12 boards while blocking five shots.
Dickinson is now 6-7, and will play at the Alvin Holiday Classic on Dec. 28.
There weren't a ton of games this week, so that led to absolutely no change on the rankings this week.
So, to shake up this week, I brought in Hitchcock. The Bulldogs are very talented, and they hung with No. 25 in class 4A Pearland Dawson. They may be 2A, but they can play. They make their debut at No. 7.
Also, some teams are starting to make moves. Read below to find out.
And if you haven't check out the weekly basketball notebook, including play of the week and game of the week, go here. The lead story involves a chilidog and an offer I couldn't refuse from Gators coach Mike Tucker.
1. La Marque (13-1) (1) — La Marque hasn't lost in nearly a month (Nov. 20) for a winning streak of 12 games. It's an impressive run. Still, I think the Cougars could make some improvements. They have the potential to not just be good, but great. They need to find a killer instinct and put teams away and stay committed to defense.
2. Clear Creek (7-1) (2) — It helps the Wildcats played just once this week, and won the game. They aren't the most talented, but they keep winning. That early season victory over Friendswood keeps them at No. 2 for now. Creek should get a good test this week at the Houston ISD Classic.
3. Friendswood (8-2) (3) — Their seven-game winning streak came to an end, but a seven-point tournament loss to area-ranked The Woodlands is nothing to worry or obsess over for the No. 11 Mustangs. I'm saying it now, watch out for this team.
4. Ball (9-3) (4) — Congrats to the Tors for their great tournament victory in Canada; but now comes a serious test: Fort Bend Dulles, No. 23 in the state. We're going to get a good idea of how good the Tors are. And if you haven't yet, be sure to read about Ball's trip to Canada here. It includes a pretty cool curling story.
5. Clear Springs (5-6) (5)— The Chargers got a nice win over Houston Reagan, thanks to a last-second shot. And I still don't think we've seen the best from the Chargers. They're still incorporating football players, so it may just be a matter of time.
6. Dickinson (5-7) (6) — A really tough nondistrict schedule doesn't make that record look good, playing eight ranked teams, but Dickinson continues to hang around. The Gators only lost to La Marque by seven, the same amount by which the Cougars defeated Ball.
7. Hitchcock (5-3) (N/A) — Don't look now, but the Bulldogs have a chance to be special. They've got a lot of speed, more than some of the teams on this list. And they buy into coach Steve Adamson's tough defensive system. Hitchcock could very well be the last Galveston County team standing in March.
8. Texas City (4-5) (7) — Last week, I said I didn't know what to make of the Stings. This week hasn't helped. I still think they're going to the playoffs in 24-4A, but with district looming, play needs to improve.
9. Santa Fe (4-7) (8) An excellent 2-1 week for the Indians, including a consolation championship at the Stafford Tournament. Coach James Modesett believes this team can contend, and well, he may be right. Another week like this, and they could leapfrog Texas City.
The Tors took Canada by storm. They made it look easy, too.
Ball High won the REB Invitational in Edmonton, Canada, showing no ill effects of negative temperatures or travel. The Tors scored 100 points in all three games, winning every contest by at least 17 points. They won the title game by 32 points, 105-73, over Holy Trinity (Ontario).
Terran Petteway was tournament MVP with 22 points and nine rebounds in the final game. Mike Evans also was named to the all-tournament team. Danzell Temple added 20 points in the championship.
I will have more updates this week with the entire experience and what it was like when I get a chance to talk and catch up with the players and coaches. They are in flight back to Galveston and I'll give them a well-deserved Sunday off.
Some questions to look forward to: What was Canada like? How cold was it? What was it like playing international (FIBA) rules as opposed to American? What was the competition like?
The story did not make Sunday's paper because the game ended at 10 p.m. Edmonton time, which was after deadline here in Galveston. To see how the Tors got to go to Canada, read this article published last Thursday.
I'll update this post when I know more. Until then, congrats to the Tors.
Well, whether you're ready or not, it's time for the first edition of the Galveston County boys basketball rankings. At the GCDN, we don't waste any time switching sports. Fresh off an exciting football year, we go right into boys basketball.
And let me tell you, there's lots to talk about.
La Marque and Friendswood are both state ranked. Ball High is...well Ball High. The Tors always bring it. Dickinson just knocked off state power Duncanville and beat area-ranked Wheatley. Texas City is fresh off its first playoff appearance in several years, and returns most of its starters. Clear Creek has lost just one game, to La Marque in double overtime, and beat Friendswood. And Clear Springs has a real shot at winning District 24-5A.
Needless to say, this could be one of the best basketball years in recent memory.
It should be noted that Hitchcock also started the year ranked, but I will not include the Bulldogs here. It's just not fair for a 2A school against 4A and 5A schools. But the Bulldogs will do well.
So now it's time to get to the nitty gritty. There are a lot of great teams, and compiling the rankings wasn't easy, especially since there's no magical process.
The good news is I've seen every team thanks to some lucky scheduling. So I have a pretty good idea. As always feel free to tell me where I went wrong (or you could tell me I did a good job). I always appreciate feedback and communicating with the fans.
1. La Marque (8-1) — It's no surprise here. With a No. 3 state ranking and a victory over Ball High, the Cougars are for real. The only loss came to Fort Bend Dulles, who won the state championship in 5A two years ago. A good start. If La Marque commits to defense, this team could go far. Real far.
2. Clear Creek (7-1) — Right after the no brainer, comes the biggest surprise. By far. Not many people had the Wildcats on their radars (guilty as charged). Nonetheless, this group has a win over Friendswood on the road and nearly beat La Marque in a double overtime loss by one point. This group is scrappy and plays great defense. That's a winning combination that should have a lot of teams nervous in 24-5A.
3. Friendswood (6-1) — The Mustangs probably want that season-opening loss to Creek back. As star Byron Randle said, "That shouldn't have happened." But since then, Friendswood has won six straight including a victory over a talented Springs team. This team wins almost any other district in the state.
4. Ball (5-3) — It seems like a low ranking for the powerful Tors, but everyone is off to a hot start. Ball is still a solid team with a lot of weapons. And its defense always keeps it in games. The Tors had a tough loss at La Marque after a weak first half and a surprising loss to Humble Christian. They do have a solid victory over Fort Bend Hightower.
5. Clear Springs (3-5)— I thought the Chargers would be higher at this point because they have the capability to win District 24-5A. But a slow start has them at fifth in the county. They've played a tough schedule with losses to La Porte and Friendswood, both state ranked. Still I expected better showings as both defeats came by double digits. The real question marks come from losses to Manvel and Kingwood. But I don't expect this ranking to stay for too long.
6. Dickinson (4-6) — Kudos to Mike Tucker and the Gators for playing one of the toughest schedules known to man. Dickinson is surely getting a lesson and learning how to play with the big boys with eight state-ranked opponents. The Gators, though, haven't backed down with big wins over Duncanville, Wheatley and Atascocita. This is another scrappy team that plays hard.
7. Texas City (3-4) — I'm not sure what to make of the Stings yet. They had some close calls to start the season 0-2 with losses by three points or less. They won a few games, but nothing too convincing. The jury is still out here, and I think the Stings are very talented.
8. Santa Fe (2-6) The Indians have shown some positive signs. They got two wins early and have lost two others by a combined five points. The key for Santa Fe is to play fundamentally sound. The Indians can't afford to make mistakes, which is hard for any team to do.
Editor's note: Former Daily News sports writer and current Fort Bend Sun sports editor Corey Roepken was present for the season opener for the La Marque boys basketball team against Fort Bend Bush. La Marque's performance inspired him enough to write a guest blog for us. Here's what he thought about La Marque's 71-67 win over Bush.
Dear La Marque fans,
Are you still down in the dumps about the football team not making the playoffs again this season? If so, I have some news that should cheer you up.
That boys basketball team you have over there has a chance to be pretty special.
I don’t work for the Daily News anymore, but I watched the Coogs play Tuesday night as part of my new job covering Fort Bend ISD. Heading into the game at Bush I didn’t expect a blowout, but I certainly would not have picked La Marque to win it.
I knew even before La Marque scored 11 points in the final 1 minute, 31 seconds to rebound from a seven-point deficit and win the game, 71-67, that it would be a good team this year. The Coogs return seven players, including University of Texas commit Julien Lewis, and are ranked No. 10 in the preseason state coaches poll.
By beating Bush on Tuesday La Marque turned even more heads than critics probably expected it to. Why? The Broncos are supposed to be pretty good, too.
District 23-5A inarguably is one of the most competitive in the state with different teams winning all the time. Heck, you don’t even need to win the district to go deep in the postseason. Ball High fans may remember losing to Elkins in the first round of last year’s playoffs. Did you know that Elkins team needed to win a tiebreaker game just to get into the postseason? Did you know that Elkins team also went all the way to the regional semifinals?
Two years ago Dulles finished third in 23-5A and went all the way to the state championship game. Hopefully you get the point. This district is fantastic, and your Coogs just beat the team that is expected to win it this season.
Bush has won four playoff games the last two seasons. It is coached by Ronnie Courtney, who led Willowridge to back-to-back state titles at the beginning of this decade. It has a star player in Darius Richardson, who had 31 points and nine rebounds Tuesday.
La Marque overcame more than great coaching and talent Tuesday. The Coogs never seemed to get a break with the officials. They overcame all of that and never let the game get away from them. The lead went back and forth even when Lewis sat out six minutes of the third and fourth quarters because he had four fouls.
Everybody knows about Lewis, but it’s the supporting cast that is going to make the Coogs the best in Galveston County be season’s end (if not already).
Jordan Dotson was his usual heady self. Darrian Provost Johnson made five 3-pointers, got seven rebounds and had four assists. Wes Henderson was a rebound machine (14) who also made a pair of 3-pointers on his way to 14 points. Quevin Cams had six assists from his forward position.
La Marque easily could have walked into Bush’s gym and been intimidated. You could tell from the get-go that wasn’t going to be the case. Coach Cedric Mason has these guys coached up pretty well already.
The past couple of seasons the Coogs have been late chargers. There will be no sneaking up on anybody this season.
I’m not here to tell you La Marque is going to win the state title. I’m not even going to tell you it can win the regional title because there is a certain team that goes by the name of Jack Yates up in Houston that won last year’s state championship and dropped 140 on Dickinson on Monday.
I’m here to tell you that if you give this team a chance, it could give you Coogs fans something to be extremely proud of.
Ball High has been the top team since the start of district play. For most of the district schedule, it looked like no team would displace the Tors at No. 1. If you’ve followed this poll at all throughout the season, you know losing games at home is a quick way to drop. That’s what Ball High did last week.
Because of that, we have a new No. 1 team.
Finally healthy and with a full team intact, the Chargers went to Galveston on Tuesday and led Ball High by more than 20 points before finishing off an 82-75 victory. Clear Springs also had built up some momentum with a victory over Clear Lake in the game before that. Two games before losing to Springs, Ball High lost to Lake.
1. Clear Springs (3): Clear Springs was No. 1 way back on Dec. 8 then promptly lost the ranking when it lost to Friendswood that night. The Chargers have done quite well since then in their first season of varsity play. They’ll be the No. 2 seed out of District 24-5A, which means they’ll have a chance to play two postseason games before facing off against mighty Fort Bend Hightower.
2. Ball High (1): The Tors have something Clear Springs wishes it had — a district championship. Two losses in their last four games wasn’t enough to keep the Tors from accomplishing that. As a result they’ll have the best draw of any of the Galveston County Class 5A teams. Fort Bend Bush lurks in the regional quarterfinals.
3. La Marque (2): Left for dead at the midway point of the district schedule, the two-time defending District 24-4A champs roared to an undefeated record during the second half of district play to claim the outright title. They were the preseason No. 1 team in this poll and acquitted themselves quite well after a 4-3 start to district play. Don’t be surprised if La Marque is the last county team standing in the playoffs.
4. Clear Brook (6): The Nos. 4, 5, 6 spots were tricky to figure out this week. Last week, Brook dropped three spots to No. 6 after losing at home to Dickinson. Also because of that, Dickinson moved ahead of the Wolverines. Those same Wolverines beat Clear Lake at home Friday to finish a season sweep of the Falcons. That means they have to be ahead of Lake.
5. Clear Lake (4): Speaking of season sweeps, Lake did that to Dickinson, so the Falcons have to be ahead of the Gators here. Something Lake can claim that every other team but Ball High is that it did not lose any district games to a team that will not be in the playoffs. The Falcons also beat Ball High on Feb. 10. That doesn’t count for much now, though, which Hightower awaiting them in the first round of the playoffs.
6. Dickinson (5): It would have been more difficult to move Gators down had they not lost at home to Brazoswood on Friday. Still, if the playoffs were decided by just second-half play Dickinson would be in after tying for fourth with Brook with a 4-3 record. That’s saying something for a team that entered district play with a 3-18 record.
7. Friendswood (7): A three-game closing stretch comprised of games with La Marque, Texas City and Angleton got the best of the Mustangs. They’re still in the playoffs as the No. 4 seed and probably have the best chance of any No. 4 seed of winning a first-round game.
8. Texas City (8): The Stings are in the playoffs for the first time in six seasons, which is significant. They were as high as No. 3 in this poll before losing four of their last six regular season games. Powerful Houston Yates likely waits in the second round of the playoffs, but just getting there would be a big step for this rebuilding program.
9. Clear Creek (9): Even before losing most of its players to injury, the Wildcats struggled to find consistency. When the injuries came, Creek was overmatched.
10. Santa Fe (10): Fifteen total victories isn’t all that bad for the Indians, though only three of those came during district play. Their slow style of play frustrated other teams at times but not enough for Santa Fe to avoid finishing last.
The high school boys basketball playoffs are finally here and what better way to kick them off than to have a video discussion about the next few weeks. Myself and sports reporter Corey Roepken sat down to talk about the Galveston County teams in the postseason.
Now that the boys basketball regular season is finished we have a nearly complete schedule for all of the Galveston County teams this week and next. Here is the list as we know it now (as of 11 p.m. Friday)
BOYS SATURDAY TAPPS-3A REGIONAL FINALS Bay Area Christian vs. Conroe The Woodlands Christian 1 p.m. at Tomball Concordia Lutheran
MONDAY REGION III-5A First Round Clear Springs vs. Fort Bend Travis 7 p.m. at Pearland High School
TUESDAY REGION III-5A First Round Ball High vs. Fort Bend Elkins 7 p.m. at Santa Fe High School
REGION III-4A First Round Texas City vs. Richmond Foster 6 p.m. at Alvin High School
La Marque vs. Rosenberg Terry 8 p.m. at Alvin High School
Friendswood vs. Rosenberg Lamar Consolidated 8 p.m. at Fort Bend ISD's Hopson Field House
GIRLS MONDAY REGION III-4A Quarterfinals Friendswood vs. Houston Washington 7 p.m. at Pasadena ISD's Phillips Field House
TUESDAY REGION IV-2A Quarterfinals Hitchcock vs. Skidmore-Tynan Site and time to be determined
Four Galveston County boys high school basketball teams know when, where and who they will play their first-round playoff games. Here is the list:
CLASS 5A Tuesday, 7 p.m. at Santa Fe High School Ball High vs. 23-5A fourth-place team • The Tors will play either Fort Bend Kempner or Fort Bend Elkins. Those two teams have tied for fourth place with 7-6 district records. They will play one another at 4 p.m. Friday at Fort Bend ISD's Wheeler Field House for the right to play 24-5A champion Ball High in the first round of the UIL playoffs.
• Clear Springs' details are close to being finalized but are pending the outcome of Friday's games. If the Chargers win their game at Clear Creek they will clinch the No. 2 seed from 24-5A and will play Fort Bend Travis in the first round. If Clear Creek wins, Clear Springs will be the No. 3 seed and will play Fort Bend Bush in the first round.
CLASS 4A Tuesday, 6 p.m. at Alvin High School Texas City vs. Richmond Foster Tuesday, 8 p.m. at Alvin High School La Marque vs. Rosenberg Terry • Galveston County hoops fans don't have to go far outside of the county for this doubleheader. Texas City is in the playoffs for the first time since 2003. The Stings tied for second place with Angleton. Coach Bob Emmerson met Angleton coach Tom Penders late Tuesday night to do a coin toss to determine which team would take the No. 2 seed and which team would take the No. 3 seed. La Marque won its third straight district title last week.
Tuesday, 8 p.m. at Fort Bend ISD's Hopson Field House Friendswood vs. Lamar Consolidated • Despite a 9-5 district record Friendswood will be the No. 4 seed and take on the 23-4A champions with the same Mustangs nickname. Friendswood will play the second game of a doubleheader Tuesday. Angleton plays El Campo at 6 p.m.
TAPPS 3A Saturday, 1 p.m. at Tomball Concordia Lutheran Bay Area Christian vs. Conroe The Woodlands Christian • This is the regional championship game. Bay Area already has won two playoff games to get to this point. The Broncos are ranked No. 10 in the state's small private school rankings. The Woodlands Christian is ranked No. 1.
I had some interesting decisions to make this week. No. 1 Ball High lost for the first time since ascending to the top of the poll. Clear Lake, which beat Ball High on Tuesday, lost to Clear Springs on Friday. Dickinson, which had seven victories all season and never appeared in the top half of the rankings beat No. 2 Clear Brook on Friday.
Funny, I thought this would get easier as the season went on and I knew more about these teams.
This is the penultimate power poll. I’ll check back in next Monday with the final poll and some thoughts on the playoffs.
1. Ball High (1): Going undefeated in District 24-5A is probably too much to ask. In that respect I am not surprised the Tors lost to Lake on Tuesday. Losing on the road against a team with as much tradition as Lake is not something for which I choose to punish Ball High. The Tors are, after all, the outright district champs.
2. La Marque (3): Guess which other team could be the outright district champs after this week’s games? That’s right, the Coogs were once three games out of first place with six to play but now control their own destiny. They already own at least a share of the 24-4A title for the third-straight year. If they win at Pearland Dawson Tuesday they’ll have the championship all to themselves.
3. Clear Springs (4): The Chargers had lost road games with Dickinson and Brazoswood before beating Lake at home on Friday. If Springs wants to separate itself from Brook and Lake and claim second place in 24-5A it needs to win at Ball High on Tuesday. There is no better way for the Chargers to prove they’ll have what it takes to win a playoff game.
4. Clear Lake (5): I wonder if the Falcons were satisfied just to beat Ball High last week. You’d think that momentum would carry over to Friday’s game at Springs, but the Chargers won by eight points. Regardless of what the reason I can’t move Lake ahead of Ball High — or even ahead of Springs. Lake has lost to Springs three times this season.
5. Dickinson (8): Well look what we have here. The Gators were 2-5 during the first half of district play but have a real chance to win their last five games and finish the second half at 5-2. They have beaten Springs and Alvin at home then went to Brook and won by five points on Friday. It’s not a fluke, either. Dickinson lost to Lake by three points and to Ball High by four points during the second half. The Gators may not have reached the 10-win mark yet, but beat a team on the road and you deserve to be ranked ahead of them.
6. Clear Brook (2): I know this is a far drop for the Wolverines, but they left me no choice after Friday’s home loss to Dickinson. That’s not as awful as it looks, though, because the Gators have been playing much better during the second half of district play. Still, Brook needs to win its last two games (Friday against Lake included) to reestablish some momentum for the playoffs.
7. Friendswood (6): The Mustangs controlled their own destiny in terms of winning the 24-4A championship but a loss at home to La Marque Tuesday ruined that. They got back within striking distance by beating Texas City on Friday. Winning Tuesday’s game at Angleton would do two things for Friendswood. First, it would give it a share of the district title if La Marque loses at Dawson. Second, it would give the Mustangs confidence that they can win tough games as they head into the playoffs.
8. Texas City (7): I thought Friday’s game at Friendswood would be a chance for the Stings to show the district they have not fallen off the radar, but when it came to crunch time they committed turnovers. The Stings should beat Santa Fe Tuesday to finish with a 10-4 district record. That’s pretty good for a team that hasn’t made the playoffs since 2004. Plus, as bad is it might feel right now for Texas City, it can share the title with a victory and a La Marque loss.
9. Clear Creek (9): The Wildcats have lost 10 in a row, but I wouldn’t count them out against Springs in the regular season finale on Friday. A lot of teams at Springs have been beating their Creek rivals this season. A victory over Springs Friday at least would salvage something for the Wildcats.
10. Santa Fe (10): I thought last week might be a chance for the Indians to pick up two victories, but they slipped up against Brazosport on Friday. They face a tall task of winning at Texas City in Tuesday’s finale.
NOTE: I apologize this is late. It was done by 11:30 this morning, but I didn't click the right button to release it.
This week was as difficult as it has been for me to rank all these teams. The only teams who were locks for their spots were No. 1 Ball High and the bottom three of Dickinson, Clear Creek and Santa Fe. The difficult part is comparing the 5A teams to the 4A teams. So the first thing I did was rank the three 4A teams separate from the 5A teams.
I think the only group that might be crying foul on me this week will be the Clear Springs fans. The Chargers beat Clear Brook at home on Tuesday so it might make sense to rank them ahead of Clear Brook this week. Well, Springs followed that with a loss to Dickinson. I understand it was on the road, but Brook beat Dickinson on the road by 14. On top of that, Brook and Springs split two games this season with each winning at home in overtime. While Springs followed Tuesday's victory with a loss, Brook followed Tuesday's loss with a 32-point win at home.
1. Ball High (1): The Tors can clinch a share of their second straight district title on Tuesday. If they do it Tuesday they will have earned it as they must travel to Clear Lake. If they do that they can clinch the title outright on Purple Reign Night Friday against visiting Clear Creek.
2. Clear Brook (2): The Wolverines have lost three games against Texas teams since Dec. 16. Two of those came against Ball High. One came on the road in overtime against Clear Springs. They are in good shape to finish second in the district as Springs and Lake still have to play one another in addition to playing Ball High.
3. La Marque (5): Thanks to a five-game winning streak La Marque has gone from the postseason bubble to first place in 24-4A. It's a four-way tie at the top, and the Coogs can make a big statement this week. They travel to Friendswood Tuesday then host Angleton on Friday. If they win those games they'll be a shoe-in for their third district championship in a row.
4. Clear Springs (4): I wonder if the victory over Clear Brook took too much out of the Chargers for their loss at Dickinson on Friday. They were struggling with a bunch of ill players Tuesday, but had the emotional edge since they were playing at home and trying to avenge an earlier district loss. Then on Friday they probably let their guard down a bit against a Dickinson team that probably isn't done surprising the district's front-runners.
5. Clear Lake (6): Lake has taken care of the games it is supposed two by beating Dickinson, Brazoswood and Clear Creek over its last three games. Now the Falcons must host Ball High Tuesday then travel to Springs on Friday. We'll really see what kind of shape Lake is in this week.
6. Friendswood (7): Games get closer during the second half of district play. That's why Friendswood showed a little extra last week. The Mustangs thrashed Manvel by 26 points at home then beat Brazosport by seven points on the road. They're tied for first place as a result of those victories, but it gets extra hard the rest of the way as the Mustangs finish with games against La Marque, Texas City and Friendswood.
7. Texas City (3): The good news for the Stings is they're guaranteed a playoff spot. The bad news is that might not mean as much as they hope because they're falling fast. All of their momentum is gone. They have a chance to show this week they're still a threat to make a run in the postseason. They need to take care of Brazosport at home Tuesday before they get a chance to make a huge statement on the road against Friendswood on Friday.
8. Dickinson (8): I'm pretty sure I said recently that Dickinson would not go down easily the rest of the season. I was proven right on Friday when the Gators beat Clear Springs thanks to some stingy defense in the closing minutes. Dickinson should beat visiting Alvin on Tuesday. If the Gators do that and Clear Springs finds a way to win at Brazoswood Tuesday, Dickinson and Brazoswood will be tied for fifth place with 4-7 district records. Don't be surprised if the Gators finish in fifth place all by themselves.
9. Clear Creek (9): You wonder if Creek is going to pull an upset at some point these last two weeks now that it has had a chance for its new players to fit into the rotation. Brook is pretty good, but if the Wolverines overlook Tuesday's game at Creek the Wildcats may have some swagger waiting for them.
10. Santa Fe (10): Santa Fe hosts Pearland Dawson in a winnable game Tuesday. If the Indians do that they' may host Brazosport on Friday with a chance to guarantee they will not finish last in 24-4A. That probably counts for something at this point.
As I sit down to write this it is 12:15 a.m. Saturday. It’s not the only thing I have to do before I go bed, but I still bet I’ll get more sleep than four high school basketball coaches in District 24-4A tonight (uhh this morning).
The perfect storm of results has given basketball fans something incredible to look forward to the next two weeks. It is amazing it has come to this.
After beating Manvel on Jan. 27 Texas City was sitting pretty atop the district standings with an 8-0 record. The Stings had a two-game lead and seemed poised to win the regular season title. They have lost all three games since then and now sit in a four-way tie for first place.
That’s right. There is no second, third or fourth place right now. All four of the previously mentioned teams have 8-3 district records.
No coach, with the possible exception of La Marque’s Cedric Mason whose team has won the last two district titles, will tell you the No. 1 goal is to finish with the best record. In this district, they’ll tell you, the No. 1 goal is to make the playoffs.
Texas City coach Bob Emmerson said it to me a couple of weeks ago. Angleton coach Tom Penders said it to me Tuesday when his Wildcats won at Texas City.
The current situation probably changes everything. All four teams have clinched a playoff berth. All four teams are on level ground in terms of winning the regular season championship. On top of that it’s all they have to play for.
Here is how I rank the teams in terms of their chances of winning the title outright, but you probably should expect a tie.
1. Texas City Remaining games: vs. Brazosport; at Friendswood; vs. Santa Fe The lowdown: That’s right, I said it. In the midst of a three-game losing streak the Stings are the lowest team right now, but they have the best chance of winning all three of their games. They play two home games against 2-9 teams. If Texas City can get back on the right track against Brazosport, which is not necessarily an easy task with Brazosport having won on the road against Angleton, it can go to Friendswood with something to play for Friday. If the Stings regroup to win their next two games there is no way they will lose at home to Santa Fe in the regular season finale.
2. La Marque Remaining games: at Friendswood; vs. Angleton; at Pearland Dawson The lowdown: It wasn’t too long ago that La Marque seemed to be out of the race for the title. Now the Coogs probably are the team with the most confidence considering they’re the only players with any experience winning a district title. They have won five games in a row. Winning at Friendswood will be a tall task, but if I had to pick any team to win one game against any given opponent right now I’d pick La Marque.
3. Angleton Remaining games: at Manvel; at La Marque; vs. Friendswood The lowdown: If the Wildcats beat Manvel and La Marque I don’t see them losing at home to Friendswood on the last night of the regular season. But winning at La Marque right now probably is the most difficult task for any of these four teams. But I would be shocked if Angleton loses at Manvel. Angleton has too much to play for.
4. Friendswood Remaining games: vs. La Marque; vs. Texas City; at Angleton The lowdown: It’s not that I think Friendswood is the worst of these four teams (check Monday’s power poll for what I do think) it’s just that I can’t imagine the Mustangs winning all three games. The other three teams have what some may consider a break in the schedule the rest of the way. Friendswood doesn’t. I wouldn’t be shocked if the Mustangs do it, but I wouldn’t bet on it either.
It’s 12:45 a.m. now. Any of you coaches still awake?
Heading into the final two games of the girls basketball regular season, the race for district MVP in 24-5A and 24-4A is down to just a few candidates.
The 24-4A MVP in my mind is an easy selection — Friendswood point guard Annalisa Hall. She’s averaging 17 points and seven assists for a Lady Mustangs team that should win the district title.
A case could be made for La Marque’s Jaleesa Allen, who has had some monster games. But I’ve also seen her get stopped with foul trouble a couple of times this year.
In 24-5A, I think it’s going to come down to three players: Creek’s Chelsea Soloninka, Lake’s Jasmine Beverly and Dickinson’s Marissa Ashton. Springs’ Mileka Loydrake could also be in the discussion, but she is only a sophomore, which will likely cause her to rule out.
I talked with Creek coach Jana Williams on Thursday and she presented her case for Soloninka as MVP.
“Opponents grab her, face guard her and run a box-and-1 defense on her all the time,” Williams said. “And she still averages 15 points. After a game, I look at the book, and I can’t believe the points she’s scored against the defenses she faced. Why shouldn’t she be the MVP?”
Soloninka is averaging 15.2 points and 3.9 steals for a Creek squad, which could win the district time. Meanwhile, Ashton is averaging 16.9 points and 9.2 rebounds a game for a young Dickinson team that has missed the playoffs.
Even Williams said it’s easy to make a case for Ashton. Not only is she headed to Texas Tech and displaying her talent as one of the top players in the state, she doesn’t have nearly as strong a supporting cast as Soloninka.
If I had to pick one of those two stars right now, I would probably say Ashton is the 24-5A MVP. But, I seem to change my mind on the subject every week. It really is that close a race.
Who do you think are the MVPs in 24-5A and 24-4A? Is Ashton's talent too much to ignore at Dickinson, or is the steady Soloninka the best in 24-5A?
More than any other week in this poll you’re going to see how different it is from the college football and basketball polls we’re so used to. I stated at the beginning of the season that this poll ranks teams by how I think they would do against the others on a neutral court this week.
So, you might be surprised to see that Clear Brook moved up from No. 3 to No. 2 even though the Wolverines lost to Ball High at home. You might be surprised to see La Marque did not move ahead of Texas City after beating the Stings at home.
Feel free to leave your criticism in the comments section.
1. Ball High (1): The Tors now have beaten Clear Springs and Clear Brook on the road. Friday’s game against Brook was a blowout in the first half, which shows Ball High was more prepared. At this point, though, I think Ball High simply is the class of its district and all of Galveston County. The only thing left to see out of the Tors is how they do in the postseason.
2. Clear Brook (3): The Wolverines trailed by as many as 22 points in the first half before storming back to within two points midway through the fourth quarter. I wonder if Friday’s game would have had a different outcome had Brook been able to keep it close throughout. Regardless of the loss, the Wolverines are a good team and deserve to stay up here.
3. Texas City (2): I have no problem with the Stings losing on the road to La Marque. A victory would have been big, but La Marque had more to play for. I’m dropping the Stings one spot because except for one spurt in the first half La Marque pretty much dominated. The Stings can reaffirm their spot atop the standings by beating Angleton at home Tuesday night.
4. Clear Springs (4): Springs trailed the entire first three quarters at Alvin on Friday before finally taking the lead in the final minute. Alvin has played some close games at home recently, but I still want to see more from the Chargers against a winless team. Tuesday’s home game against Brook is for sole possession of second place.
5. La Marque (7): The Coogs will not move ahead of Texas City because of the emotional factors involved in Friday’s victory. With only a one-game lead on Manvel for the final playoff spot the Coogs were more desparate than the Stings. They were playing at home. The Stings, on the other hand, already had handed La Marque a 22-point loss and had a two-game lead on the second-place teams. If Friday’s game had been played on a neutral court I think it would have had a different outcome.
6. Clear Lake (5): Lake has two scrape-by victories over bottom –half teams in its last three games. They sandwich a home overtime loss to Brook. The Falcons are slipping just a bit and had better watch out on Tuesday when they host Brazoswood. If Brazoswood wins that game the two teams will be tied for fourth place. That’s a precarious position for a Lake team that has played quite well at times this season.
7. Friendswood (6): Sometimes it shouldn’t matter where a game is played. When one team is much better than its opponent — as was the case Friday when Friendswood played Pearland Dawson — it should win. But Dawson beat Friendswood by seven points to pull off what could have been the most stunning victory in District 24-4A thus far. The Mustangs got lucky that Angleton lost at home to Brazosport the same night. Now there is a three-way tie for second place, and they’re all two games clear of the fifth place team.
8. Dickinson (8): Dickinson showed some fight on the road at Brazoswood Tuesday then again at home against Clear Lake on Friday. The Gators likely are out of the playoff race, but don’t count on them being an easy out the rest of the way.
9. Clear Creek (9): The struggles continue for Creek, but the Wildcats have a winnable game Tuesday at Alvin. A victory would be significant in the fact that it would mean Creek probably won’t finish last in the district.
10. Santa Fe (10): The Indians took Manvel to overtime on the road Friday. That might have been their best chance for a victory in this two-week span as they play La Marque and Angleton this week
With the high school basketball regular season heading into its stretch run, myself, sports reporter Corey Roepken and Mainland Editor T.J. Aulds sat down to talk about what we've seen from Galveston County's teams thus far this season and what we think their fates may be in the playoffs.
First up were the boys. Corey explained the reasoning about his power poll, and we also had discussions about the best coach in the county, the best player and the most surprising team. (Four parts)
Video Part 1
Video Part 2
Video Part 3
Video Part 4
Then it was time to talk girls hoops. I had to explain my reasoning for moving Clear Springs up to No. 1 in the power poll. We also discussed how spoiled last year's Dickinson team made us and whether any of the county teams could reach Austin this season. (3 parts)
What a wild night in girls high school basketball on Tuesday.
There were three major upsets (at least in my opinion) — Clear Springs over Clear Creek, Dickinson over Brazoswood, and Dawson over Angleton. The Dawson win is significant because it puts Friendswood back in control for the outright District 24-4A title.
That said, Friendswood’s reign atop the power poll comes to an end this week, after it lost to Angleton on the road Friday. The new No. 1 may be a case of “what have you done for me lately,” but I think it’s the correct decision — at least, for this week.
One more thing — check the blog on Wednesday night. Myself, sports writer Corey Roepken and Mainland Editor T.J. Aulds will sit down and have a video podcast regarding boys and girls high school basketball. We'll try to have the videos posted by 8 p.m., so be sure to check it out.
Now on to the poll.
1. Clear Springs (3) — The Lady Chargers aren’t always pretty to watch, but they have certainly played some nail-biters in recent weeks. Winning at Creek by two points on Tuesday (although I still wonder what happened to the last two seconds on the clock in the 35-33 victory) was enough for me to reward Springs with the top spot in this week’s poll. The Lady Chargers will win again on Friday against Alvin, but things get tough from there. They close out the regular season at Brook, and with home games against Dickinson and Brazoswood. A sweep of those, and Springs will be in the mix for a share of the district title. But losing all three could cost them a playoff spot.
2. Friendswood (1) — There is no shame in losing to Angleton on the road. That’s a tough place to win. But the defeat did show that the Lady Mustangs aren’t perfect and still have to improve on a few things before the playoffs.
3. Clear Creek (2) — I was all set to make Creek No. 1 this week. Then they lost at home to Springs. The Lady Wildcats know how to bully teams around with their defense, but they still have a tendency to struggle when someone gives them a taste of their own medicine like Springs did. Still, with Brazoswood also losing on Tuesday, Creek is in control of its own destiny for the 24-5A title. They’ll have a few more chances to get that top spot in the poll before the end of the regular season.
4. Dickinson (5) — Friday’s loss to Creek was really, really bad. But give credit to the Lady Gators for rebounding nicely with a huge win over first-place Brazoswood. With four games left in the season, Dickinson has to win out and hope for a lot of things to go their way. But at least they are keeping hope alive by winning games.
5. La Marque (4) — The Lady Cougars aren’t going to be tested again until the season finale at home against Friendswood. Let’s see how much momentum they can gain before that contest on Feb. 10.
6. Hitchcock (6) — I don’t see the Lady Dawgs sliding from this spot for the rest of the season. They are clearly better than the bottom three teams in the poll, but I don’t think they’d get a victory over the top five.
7. Texas City (9) — The Lady Stings showed definite signs of progress this week. They beat Santa Fe at home for their second district win. And although they lost, Texas City hung around against Manvel and only fell by three points. That’s enough to move them out of the power poll basement.
8. Ball High (8) — As expected, the Lady Tors got another victory over still winless Alvin. The big question now is whether Ball can score an upset in the final weeks of the season.
9. Santa Fe (7) — The Lady Indians certainly didn’t back up my decision last week to bump them up to No. 7. They proceeded to lose by five on the road to Texas City and then get clobbered by Friendswood on Tuesday. Ouch.
Nearly four weeks ago I bravely published my predictions for the District 24-5A and District 24-4A boys basketball schedules. Here’s a look at how I’m doing so far as the midway point of the season is upon us.
It looks like picking Ball High to win 24-5A was the right call. I predicted the Tors would finish with a first-place record of 12-2. The Tors are 6-0 and easily are the class of the district. Right now it seems ridiculous to think they’ll actually lose those two games.
I picked Clear Springs to finish second at 11-3, and that still could happen. The Chargers, however, will have to go 7-1 the rest of the wayto reach that mark. It’s not out of the question, but a safer bet would be that they will not.
If Clear Brook can beat a reeling Clear Lake team on the road Tuesday the Wolverines will finish the first half with a 6-1 district record. Their only loss would be on the road against Ball High. I predicted Brook to finish 9-5 and claim the third seed, but it sure doesn’t seem like the Wolverines are going to lose four more district games.
I refer to Clear Lake as a reeling team, but that’s only relative. The Falcons lost at home to Springs on Tuesday then needed overtime to beat Alvin on the road Friday. If the Falcons lose to Brook on Tuesday they’ll be right on track at 4-3 for the 8-6 district record I predicted for them before the schedule began. That will be enough to get them into the playoffs.
Just like in 24-5A, it’s easy to pick the top four teams in 24-4A. La Marque holds only a one-game lead over Manvel for the final playoff spot, but I have a difficult time seeing the Coogs missing the postseason this year.
La Marque is making me look pretty bad right about now after I picked them to finish 12-2 and share the district title with Angleton. The Coogs are 4-3 at the midway point and are three games behind undefeated Texas City. It appears I got those two teams flip-flopped in my predictions.
I suggested Texas City would finish 7-7 and claim the fourth playoff spot when in fact it seems La Marque is headed for that type of season. The Stings, on the other hand, are flying high at the midway point. They crushed La Marque at home, and beat Angleton and Friendswood with last-second shots.
Friendswood and Angleton are tied for second place at 5-2. Angleton still could get to the 12-2 record I predicted, but that would mean beating Texas City on the road in additon to winning all of its other games, too. It’s possible, but not as likely. Friendswood gets Texas City at home during the second half of the schedule, so the Mustangs easiliy could go 6-1 during the second half and get to the third-place record of 11-3 I predicted for them.
Now, onto this week’s power poll:
1. Ball High (1): Unless Clear Lake turns it around in time for its home game against the Tors in a couple of weeks it looks like Friday’s game at Clear Brook is the only one that could be a loss for Ball High. The Tors are just much better than every other team in the district
2. Texas City (3): Is it just me or do the Stings just seem destined for something special this season? It’s big enough to get one buzzer-beater victory during district play, but Texas City now has two after Greg Wilson slayed Friendswood last week. The Stings should be 8-0 when they head into the hostile territory that is La Marque on Friday.
3. Clear Brook (4): The Wolverines are taking care of business just like you’d expect one of the district’s elite teams to do. All the hype is on Ball High right now, and I suspect that’s just the way Brook coach Jason Pillow likes it. He won’t be able to hide from that hype, though, if he leads his team to two victories this week because the second would mean a home victory over those undefeated Tors.
4. Clear Springs (5): The victory at Clear Lake on Tuesday proved that these Chargers aren’t going to be an average team this season. They will, however, have to figure out a new rotation for three weeks while their starting center sits out due to a failing grade. They host Clear Creek and travel to Alvin this week, and that’s two probable victories even with a depleted lineup.
5. Clear Lake (2): As I wrote above, the Falcons are going to make the playoffs. I am confident in that. They’ve just hit a lull that dates back to last Friday when they never really were in the game at Ball High. The loss to Springs wasn’t horrible, but it’s a game you’d expect Lake to win at home. Going to overtime at Alvin on Friday was a bigger head-turner than the loss to Springs. Consider this: Lake beat Dickinson by 40. Dickinson beat Alvin by 28. Lake beat Alvin by six. Yeah, something is just not right right now for the Falcons.
6. Friendswood (7): Here is where La Marque fans start to think I’m crazy. Yes, Friendswood is moving ahead of the Coogs despite losing to them by 17 points a week ago last Friday. It’s because that game was on the road, and on Tuesday the Mustangs showed much more life on the road against Texas City than La Marque did. How it plays on the road shows more about a team than how it plays at home. The Mustangs had Texas City beat had it not been for a last-second 3-pointer that somehow, some way, banked left instead of straight.
7. La Marque (6): The Coogs are 4-0 at home and 0-3 on the road so far in district play. If they’re going to make their playoff run easy they need to win at Brazosport tonight. If they’re going to make it hard they’ll lose tonight then face the real possibility of falling to 4-5 in district play when archrival Texas City comes calling on Friday.
8. Dickinson (9): The Gators showed some life on Friday by winning at Clear Creek. That’s why they switch spots with the Wildcats this week. Enrique Gaines and JaShaud Sims have been getting their mitts on so many missed shots I might start interchanging their last names whenever I write the word “rebound” the rest of the season.
9. Clear Creek (8): The Wildcats already were struggling to find consistency that losing two starters to injuries probably feels like a punch in the gut. I believe Chris Romine is the right coach for Creek, but he hasn’t had much of a chance in his first two years due to injuries to some of his best players.
10. Santa Fe (10): You forgive the Indians the home loss to Texas City on Friday, because in their two previous games they won on the road. Granted it was two of the other also-rans in the district, but a road win is a big deal no matter who it’s against, especially for a team like Santa Fe, which began district play with four-straight losses. Nobody is going to mistake the Indians for a district title contender, but at some point you have to give them credit for scrapping together road victories in back-to-back games.
We’re coming down the stretch in the girls basketball season and it’s clear to me there is only one team that seems poised for a deep playoff run.
Friendswood, No. 1 in the power poll again this week, isn’t as strong as Dickinson was the past two years. But I can see the Lady Mustangs making it to regionals and potentially earning a trip to Austin.
There are a few more teams in the county (Creek, Springs and La Marque) that should make the playoffs. But I’m not sure if they can win a playoff game, especially with 24-5A matched up against the tough Fort Bend district. Hopefully they can prove me wrong.
Here’s this week’s poll. Only Friendswood and La Marque remain in the same spots as the last edition.
1. Friendswood (1) — The Lady Mustangs lost reserve post Lindsey Landers for the year to a torn anterior cruciate ligament. It’s a loss, but not one they can’t overcome. I expect Friendswood to beat Angleton on Friday and all but clinch the 24-4A title.
2. Clear Creek (3) — The Lady Wildcats have rebounded nicely after the surprising loss to Springs. Maybe it was a bit of a wake-up call. The next three games are big for Creek if it wants to repeat as district champs.
3. Clear Springs (2) — The Lady Chargers have hit a bumpy stretch after a strong start in district. But its understandable for a team with no seniors to lose back-to-back games by three points combined. They should get back on the winning track against Ball on Friday.
4. La Marque (4) — I know the Lady Cougars have lost two in a row. But I still feel like this team is on the verge of being very dangerous. If they can keep Jaleesa Allen out of foul trouble, I could see a playoff run that goes two or three rounds deep. But that’s a big if.
5. Dickinson (6) — The Lady Gators aren’t completely out of the 24-5A playoff race. But they need to pull off an upset or two in the coming weeks to have a shot at the postseason. If I’ve learned anything the last three years covering Galveston County basketball, it’s don’t doubt Marissa Ashton.
6. Hitchcock (5) — Surprising road losses to Van Vleck and Industrial put the Lady Dawgs in a hole for the district title. Playoffs are still a given, but they need to get stronger closing out games if they want a deep playoff run.
7. Santa Fe (9) — After winning two straight, the Lady Indians have put themselves back into the playoff race. There is still work to be done, but with I won’t be shocked if Santa Fe slips into the No. 4 spot in 24-4A by season’s end.
8. Ball High (7) — The Lady Tors haven’t been competitive in district play the past few weeks. A visit to Alvin on Tuesday may be the last win Ball can get this year.
9. Texas City (8) — The Lady Stings have seemingly taken a step backward in the past four games. They get the one team they beat in district play on Friday. But Santa Fe is hot and likely looking for revenge.
It would have been difficult to miss a noteworthy happening in Galveston County basketball no matter which game you picked to watch tonight. I think I picked the best one.
I watched Texas City's Greg Wilson bank in a 30-foot(ish) shot at the buzzer to give his team a 51-49 victory over visiting Friendswood. That shot could go down as the most important when it comes to deciding the District 24-4A title. If Wilson had missed his Stings would be tied for first place with Angleton and Friendswood after tonight's games. Instead, the Stings remained undefeated and have a one-game lead on Angleton — a team Texas City beat with a last-second shot on the road.
Speaking of Angleton, the Wildcats beat La Marque, 89-69, tonight to give La Marque its third district loss. The Coogs probably still will make the playoffs, but it's difficult to see them winning a third-straight district title now. They'd probably have to go 8-0 the rest of the way just to have a chance.
Clear Springs had perhaps the biggest victory tonight when it went on the road to defeat Clear Lake, 68-63. That game matched two teams with 3-1 district records. The victory sets up a big showdown Friday when undefeated Ball High travels to Clear Springs. The Chargers could force a tie atop the standings by winning that game. Otherwise Ball High will have at least a two-game lead on every team except Clear Brook if the Wolverines beat Brazoswood at home on Friday. I'll be in League City on Friday to watch Ball High and Clear Springs both try to get the biggest victory of their seasons.
Back to Texas City... it had been a long time since I saw a true buzzer beater. The last one I can remember was five years ago when I worked in Michigan. A team got two shots at it in the closing seconds. The first shot from the right corner missed and caromed along the baseline on the other side. A kid jumped to grab it with both hands and while he was in the air facing the basket he threw the ball over his head to another teammate waiting in the opposite corner of the first shot. That kid made the shot to set off a wild celebration on the court much like Texas City had tonight.
Typically I do a great job of keeping an unbiased expression in the biggest moments of any game, but I caught myself with a "Did that really just happen?" look on my face. I was happy because I hadn't seen one in a while. I had seen a lot of would-be shots miss but that's it. It wasn't that I wanted Texas City to win. I just wanted to see a last-second shot go in. If Friendswood had been the team taking the shot I would have wanted it to go in.
After the game I asked Texas City coach Bob Emmerson if he could take much more if it considering it's the Stings' second such victory this season. He said absolutely.
"I might lose some more hair," he said. "But I'll take it if I have to lose as much hair as I can."
Well, Friday’s No. 1 vs. No. 2 match-up was not as thrilling as I hoped. Ball High beat Clear Lake, 63-55, in Galveston. Clear Lake made 3-pointers on its first two possessions to take a 6-0 lead, but it was all Ball High after that. The Tors led by 17 late in the third quarter and never really were threatened, though Clear Lake did get within five points with 1:25 left in the game.
As I’ve said before here a loss will not necessarily drop a team from its rank. That’s the case now. Clear Lake has done plenty in the last month-plus to be the No. 2 team in this poll despite a road loss to the No. 1 team.
One thing that is for sure, though, I think Ball High is a step above Clear Lake and all the other teams in the area. There isn’t much change this week. Friendswood and La Marque swapped places after La Marque beat the Mustangs, 71-54, on Friday.
Games of the Week — Tuesday: Clear Springs at Clear Lake, 7:30 p.m.; Friendswood at Texas City, 7:30 p.m.; Friday: Ball High at Clear Springs, 7 p.m.
1. Ball High (1): The Tors knocked off two of the teams (Brazoswood and Clear Lake) with the best overall records in 24-5A last week. After Friday’s triumph over Clear Lake coach Jerald Temple said his team “didn’t do anything spectacular” because it simply won a home game. He said this week will tell a lot about the Tors as they play at Clear Creek and at Clear Springs.
2. Clear Lake (2): All this time I was under the impression Kyle Ashton was not playing I was wrong. He has been back from his broken foot since the start of district play. He makes a big difference for the Falcons as he is the only player who seems willing to penetrate. The loss at Ball High is no big deal. The Falcons are going to be fine and still should contend for the district title.
3. Texas City (3): I admit with all the inconsistency Texas City showed during the non-district schedule I wanted to see if the Stings could keep their momentum going after beating La Marque and Angleton two weeks ago. They did that with easy wins against Pearland Dawson and Brazosport last week. They can deliver another strong message by beating Friendswood on Tuesday.
4. Clear Brook (4): Don’t look now but the Wolverines might be gaining some momentum. They should beat Dickinson and Brazoswood this week. If they do that it will set them up for a big opportunity next week when they play Clear Lake and Ball High.
5. Clear Springs (5): The Chargers have had some nailbiters in four district games. They are 3-1 with the games decided by an average of 2.5 points. Their only loss was by one point at Clear Brook in overtime. They’ll take two victories by an average of one point this week as they take on Clear Lake and Ball High.
6. La Marque (7): The Coogs showed some life on Friday by beating previously undefeated Friendswood by 17 points at home. That came three days after La Marque lost to Manvel in overtime. The two-time defending champs are not out of it, but they need to start racking up some wins. That must begin tonight when they travel to Angleton.
7. Friendswood (6): The Mustangs are in the middle of a difficult three-game stretch that includes the other three of the top four teams in District 24-4A. They travel to Texas City tonight before returning home for a game against Angleton on Friday. Two wins or two losses this week would be a gigantic swing either direction.
8. Clear Creek (8): Based on Friday’s results I wanted to flip-flop Clear Creek and Dickinson, but then you look at Tuesday’s games and you’re just confused. The Wildcats lost twice last week but both games were on the road against probable playoff teams. They did take Clear Lake to overtime on Tuesday.
9. Dickinson (9): The Gators snapped an 11-game losing streak by beating Alvin by 28 points on Friday. That’s the same Alvin team Clear Creek beat by one point at home. So why isn’t it easy to to move Dickinson ahead of Clear Creek? Because that same Clear Lake team that needed overtime to beat Clear Creek beat Dickinson by 40. Raise your hand if you can’t figure it out either.
10. Santa Fe (10): I said last week Santa Fe would win a game this year. The Indians didn’t waste much time making that prediction come true. They went on the road to beat Pearland Dawson in a match-up of the only winless teams in the district. Santa Fe has another winnable game Tuesday when it travels to Brazosport.
The beauty of high school sports is that (for the most part) it is among the most unpredictable things in this world. These are, after all, teenagers we're talking about. The Texas City Stings, though, showed some big time maturity last week. If you read this blog at all this season you knew I thought the Stings were talented. They just had too much inconsistency. They busted out of that funk in a big way, and thus have moved up five spots in this week's power poll.
On Tuesday Texas City crushed La Marque, 71-49. All that swagger you expected two-time defending district champ La Marque to have was absent. That's because the Stings had all of it. How big a whipping was it? La Marque never even made a threatening run. I can remember only one time when the Coogs made consecutive baskets after the first quarter. La Marque is going to be fine, but for now Texas City is the team to beat in District 24-4A.
The Stings proved that again on Friday when they went to Angleton and beat the No. 14-ranked team in the state. Angleton is a really good team that had some good results this season. It's a big deal to win a district game on the road. That was a huge statement the Stings made.
Here is some more perspective on Texas City for you. On Dec. 30 La Marque beat No. 12-ranked Houston Jones by five. One week later La Marque lost to Texas City by 22. The same night Texas City beat La Marque, Jones beat No. 1-ranked Houston Wheatley by five. We're not talking about results separated by a month or so. These games were one week apart. Then Texas City backed it up by beating Angleton on the road three days later.
I'm not saying Texas City should be the No. 1 team in the state, but if the Stings keep up their winning ways they should be viewed as a legitimate threat when the playoffs roll around.
Movers of the Week — Texas City (+5), La Marque (-4), Clear Springs (-3), Clear Lake (+3)
Games of the Week — Friday: Clear Lake at Ball High, 7 p.m.; Friendswood at La Marque, 7:30 p.m.
1. Ball High (1): The Tors had little trouble with fellow defending co-champ Clear Brook on Tuesday then beat a struggling Dickinson team on the road by nine points. You'd like to think the Tors could have beat the Gators by more than nine after Clear Lake beat them by 40 on Tuesday, but that's not enough to drop Ball High from the top spot.
2. Clear Lake (5):I know Dickinson is not having a good year, but anytime you win a game by 40 points you're doing something extremely right. I have been reluctant to move Lake too high in this poll due to the loss of Kyle Ashton due to injury, but I just can't ignore the success. The Falcons have not lost to a Texas team in more than a month. They are 8-2 during that time. That includes a road victory over an 18-4 Brazoswood team on Friday. I can't wait for Friday's showdown with Ball High.
3. Texas City (8):After last week's impressive showing the Stings look like the class of the district. Let's see if they can keep it up this week with a home game against Pearland Dawson and a road game against Brazosport.
4. Clear Brook (6): I was right most of the season when I thought Brook was missing something during the non-district schedule. The Wolverines were missing their biggest player in Dartmouth University commitment Bimo Ghogomu. He broke his leg in a preseason scrimmage and finally returned on Friday to help Brook beat visiting Clear Springs in overtime. When he gets back to full strength I fully expect the Wolverines to approach the same caliber they ended last season with.
5. Clear Springs (2): The idea of this poll is that if a team is ranked ahead of one team it means I think the higher-ranked team would win on a neutral court this week. So why move Brook ahead of Springs after Brook needed overtime to beat Springs by one point at home? That has more to do with the fact that Springs trailed the whole game then needed a last-second tip in to beat Alvin at home on Tuesday. The Chargers are good, and I expect them to make the playoffs, but they just don't have that extra oomph they had at the start of the season.
6. Friendswood (4): Friendswood didn't drop two spots because of its performance last week. I just felt that Texas City and Brook needed to move ahead of the Mustangs. Friendswood beat Pearland Dawson and Manvel last week, but those teams probably will not figure into the playoff race. The Mustangs get a chance to notch a big victory when they travel to La Marque on Friday.
7. La Marque (3): After the loss to Texas City coach Cedric Mason he said a lackluster practice the day before hurt his team. The Coogs apparently got the message as they had no trouble beating Santa Fe on Friday. La Marque still is going to make the playoffs, but it's going to be difficult to win the district title now. They certainly can do it, but they need to get some of the swagger back.
8. Clear Creek (7): The loss at Brazoswood on Tuesday wasn't horrible, but that's a game that the Wildcats could have used to say, "Hey, we're in this race for the playoffs, too." They only beat Alvin by one point at home on Friday. I'm still waiting for Creek to do something significant.
9. Dickinson (9): I'm not sure how you recover from a 40-point loss, but the Gators somewhat did it by only losing to Ball High by nine points. Victories are going to be hard to come by in district play for Dickinson. Friday at Alvin might be its first legitimate shot at getting one.
10. Santa Fe (10): Tuesday's home loss to Manvel was one game Santa Fe should have won on paper. The Indians are going to win a few games the rest of the season. I know it.
District play is in full swing, and as a result, it’s become easier to get a good gauge on the county teams for the girls hoops power poll.
There’s a new No. 1 this week, and every team moved from their spot in the last poll. Here is this week’s power poll:
1. Friendswood (2) — The Lady Mustangs lost two games in the Gulf Coast Classic last week, but they were also without their top player and likely district MVP Annalisa Hall. With Hall in the lineup, Friendswood has not lost since November. The Lady Mustangs have earned this spot.
2. Clear Springs (3) — Beating defending district champ Clear Creek on Saturday was a big step for this program. With that victory, the Lady Chargers have to be considered one of the favorites to win the District 24-5A title.
3. Clear Creek (1) — The Lady Wildcats lose to Springs on Saturday drops to third in this week’s poll. I still think Creek is the better team, but its clear that Springs ups its play when it takes on its city rival, no matter the sport. Creek had better be ready for that when the two teams face off again later this season.
4. La Marque (5) — The Lady Cougars keep improving each time I see them. Jaleesa Allen is a beast, as long as she can stay out of foul trouble. On Tuesday, I had a chance to see Jessieka Palmer take over a game. That freshman is going to be special. If they can continue to make their free throws, La Marque could give Friendswood a test next week.
5. Hitchcock (6) — The Lady Dawgs continue to beat bigger schools. Last week, they took down Brazosport and Bay City. District should be a cakewalk for these talented girls.
6. Dickinson (4) — It really is sad to see a team that dominated so easily last year to be struggling just to get a district win this year. It’s certainly not the fault of coach Wendy Tucker or the young players. It’s just a difficult rebuilding process for this program.
7. Ball High (8) — A win against Alvin on Saturday was nice, but the Lady Jackets are still winless. If Ball wants to stay in the playoff hunt, Friday’s match-up against Dickinson has to be viewed as a must-win.
8. Texas City (9) — The Lady Stings would be in the hunt for the playoff spot if they could just take advantage of their opportunities. Several times against La Marque on Tuesday, Texas City players had wide-open shots or layups and missed them.
9. Santa Fe (7) — Someone has to be last in the poll, and this week, it’s Santa Fe. A loss to Texas City before the break contributed mightily to the fall to No. 9.
The high school boys basketball season began nearly two months ago. After watching nearly 30 games in person I have a pretty good idea of where teams in Galveston County fit against each other.
The biggest surprise in my eyes has been the way Ball High has surged to the county’s best record at 13-5. Coach Jerald Temple has a team full of kids playing varsity for their first year yet he has molded them into a team that should contend for another District 24-5A title.
The Tors have won five of six heading into Tuesday’s home game against defending district co-champ Clear Brook at 7 p.m. If critics still are looking for Ball High to prove something (I’m not one of them) Tuesday is a great chance to do that.
Biggest movers: Friendswood (-3), La Marque (+2), Texas City (+2)
Games of the Week Tuesday — La Marque at Texas City, 5:30 p.m.; Clear Brook at Ball High, 7 p.m. Friday — Clear Springs at Clear Brook, 7 p.m.
1. Ball High (2): The loss to Brazosport at the Brazosport ISD tournament last weekend was iffy until I received word the Exporters shot better than 60 percent from three-point range. It was an emotional, physical game that the inexperienced Tors had not been in. I give the Tors a pass on that one, especially because it was on the Exporters’ home court.
2. Clear Springs (3): The Chargers had a quality LaPorte team down by seven points with three minutes left at the Alvin Holiday Classic before losing. Three days later they avenged a loss to Friendswood. Clear Springs should make the playoffs and may even contend for the district title in its first year of varsity play.
3. La Marque (5): La Marque is the hottest team in the county with five victories in its last six games. It’s only loss came to the host team Port Arthur Memorial at the James Gamble Tournament. The Coogs beat Houston Jones in the third-place game on Dec. 30 then opened district play with a victory over Brazosport on Saturday. They have won the last two District 24-4A titles and are the favorite to win a third in a row.
4. Friendswood (1): The Mustangs finally hit a rough patch with three-straight losses at the Alvin tournament. I can forgive the losses to quality 5A teams Fort Bend Marshall and Alief Taylor. Clear Springs is probably a shade below those two teams, and that’s the team that gave Friendswood its third loss. The Mustangs already had beaten Clear Springs but looked much worse against the Chargers this time around.
5. Clear Lake (4): Clear Lake is a peculiar team. Earlier this season the Falcons beat that Marshall team I just saw as a really good team against Friendswood. The Falcons beat Pasadena Dobie by 10 on Saturday. That’s the same team Friendswood beat by 20 at the end of November. So what gives? I know the Falcons are without starting guard Kyle Ashton. I think that’s going to hold them back a little bit.
6. Clear Brook (6): The Wolverines had won four in a row before losing their last game at a tournament in Springdale, Ark. With a 9-9 record they have been up and down all season. Will this be the time they pick it up? They have a chance to show the district they’re for real by winning at Ball High on Tuesday.
7. Clear Creek (7): Clear Creek won three of four games at a tournament at Mont Belvieu Barbers Hill last weekend, but it didn’t play any 5A teams. I’m sure the Wildcats feel good after those victories, but for that momentum to carry over they’ll need to beat Brazoswood and Alvin this week during district play. Those are two teams they need to beat twice each if they want to make the playoffs.
8. Texas City (10): The Stings finally got their first three-game win streak of the season at the Conroe Christmas Classic. They beat Conroe, Aldine MacArthur and Katy Morton Ranch before losing to a quality Cypress Woods team in the finals. The Stings followed that by rolling through the first three quarters of their district-opening victory over Manvel on Saturday. Beating La Marque at home on Tuesday would instantly turn Texas City into an early contender for the district title.
9. Dickinson (8): The only thing keeping Dickinson from the bottom spot in this poll is its victory over Santa Fe at the Clear Creek ISD Tournament. The Gators have lost eight in a row and are going to need to get a lot better real quick to have a chance to make the playoffs.
10. Santa Fe (9): A 21-point loss to Friendswood on Saturday showed how far the Indians are behind the class of the district. Right now Santa Fe just doesn’t have talent to beat many opponents without fantastic execution and outstanding defense.
I'm back for another round of prognostications. I looked into my crystal ball to figure out the records for the upcoming District 24-5A boys basketball schedule. Here's what I saw.
Ball High 12-2 Clear Springs 11-3 Clear Brook 9-5 Clear Lake 8-6 Clear Creek 7-7 Brazoswood 5-9 Dickinson 2-12 Alvin 2-12
It's obvious Ball High coach Jerald Temple knows what he's doing. The Tors have a bunch of first-year varsity players, but Temple has them playing well. They're young so they might be ripe for a slip-up here and there. Perhaps predicting them to win 12 games is too many, but right now I just don't see them losing to anyone other than Clear Springs or Clear Brook. Why not Clear Lake you ask?
Clear Lake's Kyle Ashton might not play in the near future, and he's enough to put the Falcons over the top. I do not think, though, that Lake loses so much that it cannot make the playoffs. I just don't see Alvin or Dickinson competing with the top teams, and Brazoswood's schedule featured more 3A, 2A and 1A teams than 4A and 5A teams. Clear Creek still needs to show me it can win on a consistent basis before I consider the Wildcats a legitimate threat.
Clear Springs has shown some big bright spots during the non-district schedule, and coach Chris Johnson knows what he's doing after building something pretty good at La Marque. It wouldn't surprise me if the Chargers won the district title, but right now I have to give the edge to a Ball High program that has been there and done that.
Happy new year basketball fans. I've been watching a lot of college football lately, but I haven't let that get in my way of paying attention to the Galveston County high school boys basketball scene. Looking through my files I have stat sheets from 25 games I have watched this season. There have been at least a handful more I have watched without keeping stats. So perhaps these predictions are supported by more knowledge than the typical predictions you see.
Here are my projected standings for the 24-4A schedule.
La Marque 12-2 Angleton 12-2 Friendswood 11-3 Texas City 7-7 Brazosport 4-10 Manvel 4-10 Pearland Dawson 3-11 Santa Fe 3-11
The district is top-heavy. La Marque, Friendswood and Angleton have shown they're heads and shoulders above the rest of the district. I project that those teams will split with one another. I predict a third loss for Friendswood because I think the Mustangs are more likely to have a slip up at some point.
After a slow start two-time defending champ La Marque has been rolling. The Coogs lost to five legit 5A programs during their first six games. Since they they are 11-2. I saw Angleton in a loss to Ball High and there were some good moments. Some of the Wildcats' other results since then have been good. Friendswood started the season 11-2 but has lost three-straight. The Mustangs haven't looked as good as they did when I first saw them win at Clear Springs.
Texas City hasn't been incredible this season, but the Stings have shown more upside than the other teams. Texas City has been a win one-lose one type of team so far. A .500 record in district play seems about right. And of course with these predictions that would be enough for Texas City to claim the fourth playoff spot.
Feel free to let me know if you think I have made a mistake or if I have nailed it head on.
Check back Friday for my predictions for District 24-5A
I hope everybody had a great holiday celebration. I hope it was warm for you. When I got off the plane in Ohio last Monday it was 0 degrees.
Like the temperature in the Midwest, the boys hoops schedule is heating up now that Christmas has passed. Most of the teams in Galveston County are in action tonight, Tuesday and Wednesday. I'll be covering the Alvin Lions Holiday Classic tonight and potentially the Brazosport ISD Holiday Classic on Tuesday.
I wrote last week that I'd have some district predictions today. I've decided to hold off on those until later in the week so I can see how these tournaments play out. The District 24-4A schedule opens on Saturday, so I'll post my predictions before that. Check back here Friday afternoon for my 24-4A and 24-5A predictions.
The power poll will resume next week once there have been more games to consider.
About Jordan Godwin
Jordan Godwin worked previously for the Houston Chronicle, the Austin American-Statesman and the Associated Press. Jordan graduated in 2010 from the University of Texas at Austin with a degree in Journalism. He is from Daisetta.
Jordan has covered four NCAA national championships, as well as the Houston Texans and Houston Rockets. He lives in Webster with his wife, Monica, and their cat, Lump, and dog, Jack.
