At 6-foot-5, having scored 1,000-points-plus in a varsity career that began when he was a freshman,  Cooper’s Jaelyn Rivera is standing tall these days — both literally and figuratively. 

As the primary offensive force on a Cougar team that is 18-12 after finishing second in District 4-5A, Rivera will lead Cooper into its Region 1-5A bi-district game against Amarillo Palo Duro at 6 p.m. Tuesday in Lamesa.

While Cooper coach Bryan Conover can only speculate how his team’s deliberate-offense/stifling-defense style will match up against the Dons’ run/gun/launch-the-3-as-soon-as-it’s-open attack, he knows his team will be perched on Rivera’s sturdy shoulders when the game tips off.