Category: Girls basketball

by Daniel Youngblood

LOCAL HOOPS ROUNDUP: McGee’s buzzer beater lifts AHS boys over Haltom

HALTOM CITY — Jalen McGee hit a long pull-up jumper just before the buzzer on Friday to lift the Abilene High boys basketball team to a 46-44 win over Haltom City Haltom in a key District 3-6A road game.

With the game tied at 44-all, the junior point guard dribbled the ball past midcourt and hesitated for a moment before driving just inside the 3-point line and pulling up just beyond the right elbow. A Haltom post player contested the shot, but McGee’s jumper found nothing but net to help the Eagles improve to 22-9 overall and 9-1 in league play.

Those points, McGee’s 18th and 19th of the game, completed a come-from-behind win for the Eagles, who trailed 17-5 after a rough first quarter.

https://twitter.com/ahseaglehoops/status/1225984878291963904

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by Daniel Youngblood

FEATURE: Wylie guards’ growth spurring Lady Bulldogs’ development

In 19 years of coaching girls basketball, Wylie’s Amy Powell has never experienced a season quite like this one. 

After inheriting a roster with eight seniors in her first year as the Lady Bulldogs’ coach and losing four potential returners in addition to the heavy (but expected) graduation hit, Powell entered the 2019-20 campaign with just two varsity lettermen — both frontcourt players.

That left the Wylie girls and their coach with a brand new set of guards — and some massive shoes to fill in the absence of graduated standouts Mary Lovelace, Abbey Henson, Skylar Williams and Madi Latham.

Through a couple of unfortunate injuries and the natural inconsistency that comes with inexperience, that group has performed admirably for the 17-14 Lady Bulldogs. In fact, heading into its regular-season finale on Tuesday just one game behind District 4-5A co-leaders Cooper and Wichita Falls Rider in the loss column, Wylie can thank its guards and their progress for much of the success it has experienced this year.

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by Evan Ren

BIG COUNTRY GIRLS STATISTICAL LEADERS (Scoring, rebounds, assists and steals through Feb. 7)

Big Country Preps publishes area boys and girls basketball statistical leaders each Thursday at 7 p.m.

This database will be continually updated for our subscribers throughout the remainder of the season, using only those statistics submitted by area coaches.

Teams that do not submit their statistics in a given week will not be listed when our stats are posted, but will be added to the lists below as they are received in the coming days. 

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by Evan Ren

BIG COUNTRY BOYS STATISTICAL LEADERS (Scoring, rebounds, assists and steals through Feb. 7)

Big Country Preps publishes area boys and girls basketball statistical leaders each Thursday at 7 p.m.

This database will be continually updated for our subscribers throughout the remainder of the season, using only those statistics submitted by area coaches.

Teams that do not submit their statistics in a given week will not be listed when our stats are posted, but will be added to the lists below as they are received in the coming days. 

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by Evan Ren

FEATURE: Allen helping Coleman to surprising late-season surge

COLEMAN — A month ago, the Coleman Bluekatts were 7-14, languishing near the bottom rung of District 6-3A with a 1-3 league mark (after an 0-2 start) and little hope of reversing the trend. 

But a funny thing happened on the way to writing off the season: Coleman refused to quit. 

Four weeks later, the Bluekatts (12-19) are 5-7 in district, having won three of their four games, including a  29-22 upset of third-place Bangs on Jan. 24. It has been part of a subtle, largely unnoticed, upward swing that now has Coleman threatening to snag the No. 4 seed in the playoffs if it can finish with wins over Early and Hamilton. 

At the heart of it?  A 6-foot junior center, Abbi Allen, who has quietly averaged a double-double in points and rebounds, to go with 130 blocked shots on the season.   

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by Daniel Youngblood

BCP Podcast No. 80: Dublin’s Parker talks ‘Flyin’ Lions’ basketball with Evan, Daniel

During his time at Dublin, boys basketball coach Will Parker has introduced an up-tempo, run-and-gun playing style that has not only increased enthusiasm around his program,but has helped the “Flyin’ Lions” win games. That’s a true again this season, which has seen the DHS boys produce a 20-9 record to date.

Earlier this week, Parker took some time to chat with Big Country Preps’ Evan Ren and Daniel Youngblood about this year’s team, his philosophy on tempo and the success he’s enjoyed for the Capital Farm Credit Wednesday Night Podcast.

Also in this week’s episode, Evan and Daniel discuss the top upcoming matchups on the Big Country hoops scene and give their thoughts on Wylie’s decision to promote longtime defensive coordinator Clay Martin to head football coach. 

by Daniel Youngblood

LOCAL HOOPS ROUNDUP: Wylie boys get big win at Aledo, girls have win streak snapped

ALEDO — The Wylie boys basketball team scored a big District 4-5A win Tuesday, moving into second place in the league standings with a 49-41 victory over Aledo.

The Bulldogs rallied from a 21-19 halftime deficit to take a 36-30 lead into the fourth quarter, and they held on from there to improve to 15-13 overall and 3-2 in district play.

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by Daniel Youngblood

GAME STORY: Abilene High boys survive test from Central, girls fall to Lady Cats

The Abilene boys basketball team faced more resistance than expected against a struggling San Angelo Central squad on Tuesday, but the Eagles did enough in the second half to pull away for a 57-47 win at Eagle Gym.

Playing two hours earlier than scheduled due to impending storms, AHS outscored the Bobcats 21-12 over the final eight minutes to put away a game that, to that point, had been a struggle throughout.

The victory, which came on the heels of the Eagles’ first district loss Friday at Hurst Bell, improved coach Justin Reese’s team to 21-9 overall and 8-1 in District 3-6A play.

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by Brandon McAuliffe

GAME STORY: Cisco sweeps Eastland in District 6-3A basketball twinbill

CISCO — The Cisco girls basketball team clinched at least a share of the District 6-3A championship with a 38-31 come-from-behind win over rival Eastland on Tuesday night.

The Lady Loboes moved to 12-0 in district with the win, taking a two-game lead with two games left in the regular season. Cisco needs just two more wins to finish off its third consecutive undefeated district campaign.

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by Daniel Youngblood

GAME STORY: Cooper boys secure big win over WFHS, girls rout Lady Coyotes

After letting a late lead slip away in a 53-52 loss at Wichita Falls High in their district opener on Jan. 17, the Cooper Cougars had little choice but to beat the Coyotes in Tuesday’s return trip if they hoped to secure a playoff spot out of District 4-5A.

Tipping off 2½ hours earlier than scheduled to beat the arrival of a forecasted winter storm, coach Bryan Conover’s squad did just that.

Leading by just six points at halftime after a rocky second quarter, the Coogs outscored the Coyotes 23-7 in the third to run away with a 69-51 home win and pull even with Aledo for the third spot in the 4-5A standings.

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by Mike Lee, Special to Big Country Preps

FEATURE: Goldthwaite leans on seniors during another 20-win season

How are the Goldthwaite Lady Eagles putting up another 20-win basketball season without a scorer averaging in double figures? With experience, defense and rebounding.

Goldthwaite, ranked No. 16 in the Texas Association of Basketball Coaches Class 2A poll, was 23-5 overall and 4-1 in District 10-2A through last week’s games. The district loss was 37-30 to No. 15 Santo.

Despite the 23 wins, the Lady Eagles’ leading scorer is senior guard Callie Jernigan at a modest 9.3 points per game. Post Macy Seward is averaging 7.8 points, and forward Kylee Medina is averaging 7.2.

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by Evan Ren

BIG COUNTRY PREPS PLAYER OF THE WEEK: Brownwood senior takes award with a Strong showing

While monstrous numbers are more common among small-school standouts, it’s an entirely different thing to post them against Class 4A competition. 

Our Big Country Preps Player of the Week, Brownwood senior forward Zach Strong, did exactly that last week in wins over Glen Rose (88-60) and Godley (73-52). 

Helping the Lions improve to 23-5 overall and 4-0 in district, Strong posted back-to-back double-doubles that were on a huge scale. 

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by Evan Ren

UIL hands out its share of surprises to area schools (w/ five video interviews)

ABILENE — The University Interscholastic league released its new athletic districts for the 2020-21 and 2021-22 school years on Monday. 

As always, a sizable contingent of area coaches was on hand at the Region 14 Education Service Center to receive their information packets and arrange for any last-second schedule changes that were forced by realignment. 

Perhaps the biggest stunner was a move north by Class 2A Division I power San Saba, which has been shifted to the new District 4 with Cisco, Coleman, De Leon, Goldthwaite and Winters. 

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by Daniel Youngblood

BREAKING: UIL announces new districts for 2020-21 and 2021-22 school years (five videos attached)

The University Interscholastic League announced the new athletic districts for the 2020-21 and 2021-22 school years Monday morning during its biennial reclassification and realignment.

Here are all the football and basketball districts including schools in the Big Country Preps coverage area. 

Continue reading “BREAKING: UIL announces new districts for 2020-21 and 2021-22 school years (five videos attached)” →

by Evan Ren

EVAN REN: This week in Big Country girls basketball (Feb. 3-9)

February brings the regular season homestretch for girls basketball, along with the first round of the playoffs, slated to begin Feb. 17. 

In the meantime, we’ve got a solid set of games to keep track of this week with playoff implications up and down the menu. 

Let’s have a quick look at what’s on tap:  

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by Evan Ren

If you’re not subscribed at Big Country Preps yet, here’s what you missed last month …

If you’re not subscribed at BigCountryPreps.com yet, this is what you’ve missed over the past month:
— 16 player features,
— On-site coverage of 18 of the area’s top games
— Boys and girls stat leaders (updated weekly)
— Area standings (updated twice weekly)
— Columns
— Our All-Big Country Preps football teams
— Evan Ren’s Big Country True Grit Football Team
— Four BCP Players of the Week
— Breaking sports stories. 
For as little as $3 per month you can gain access to the most comprehensive coverage of high school football, basketball, baseball, softball and track in the Big Country. 
We have three low subscription options for you to choose from — monthly, semiannual and annual — with prices that always stay the same. No sign-up gimmicks here.  
Here’s a look at the entirety of our January coverage (plus links):

Continue reading “If you’re not subscribed at Big Country Preps yet, here’s what you missed last month …” →

by Daniel Youngblood

LOCAL HOOPS ROUNDUP: Abilene High boys, girls fall at Hurst Bell

HURST — The Abilene High boys basketball team suffered its first defeat of the District 3-6A season on Friday, losing a 25-20 halftime lead in a 68-58 loss to Hurst Bell.

The Blue Raiders outscored the Eagles 21-12 in the third quarter to turn the five-point deficit into a four-point lead, before outpacing AHS 27-21 in the fourth to close out the victory.

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by Daniel Youngblood

GAME STORY: Wylie girls reverse script in big win over crosstown rival Cooper

When the Wylie girls basketball team played Cooper the first time this season, the Lady Bulldogs trailed 41-20 by halftime in a game that was decided by the midway point of the second quarter.

Friday night’s rematch at Bulldog Gym was a different story entirely.

Jumping out to a 10-2 lead after one quarter of play, Wylie controlled the first half before withstanding a strong Cooper run in the third to earn a 38-33 win and claim a share of the District 4-5A lead.

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by Evan Ren

FEATURE: San Saba’s Swiss Army knife Courtnee Cash returns to rotation after injury

SAN SABA — After missing 10 games with a sprained knee, San Saba guard Courtnee Cash was more than ready to begin contributing again. And the Lady Dillos were more than happy to welcome her back to the rotation in last week’s game with Center Point.

There’s a good reason for that. 

Cash, who leads the fourth-ranked Lady Dillos (28-3) in scoring with a 12.6-point average, has become a Swiss Army knife of sorts for coach Alicia Cummings, who utilizes the junior for a variety of tasks.

And she’s good at every one of them. 

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by Evan Ren

BIG COUNTRY GIRLS STATISTICAL LEADERS (Scoring, rebounds, assists and steals through Jan. 30)

Big Country Preps publishes area boys and girls basketball statistical leaders each Thursday at 7 p.m.

This database will be continually updated for our subscribers throughout the remainder of the season, using only those statistics submitted by area coaches.

Teams that do not submit their statistics in a given week will not be listed when our stats are posted, but will be added to the lists below as they are received in the coming days. 

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by Daniel Youngblood

BCP Podcast No. 79: Geter talks Cooper girls hoops turnaround with Evan, Daniel

Sitting at 22-8 overall and 4-1 in District 4-5A play, the Cooper girls basketball team is in the midst of its best season in more than a decade under the leadership of first-year coach Arsenio Geter.

Earlier this week, Geter took a few minutes to chat with Big Country Preps’ Evan Ren and Daniel Youngblood about the Lady Cougars’ turnaround, the goals for the remainder of the season and the future of the program for this week’s Capital Farm Credit Wednesday Night Podcast.

Also in this episode, Evan and Daniel discuss some of the Big Country’s biggest surprises of the boys and girls basketball season.

by Daniel Youngblood

LOCAL HOOPS ROUNDUP: Wylie girls upset No. 23 Rider, boys’ rally comes up short

WICHITA FALLS — After starting the District 4-5A season with lopsided losses to Wichita Falls Rider and Cooper, the Wylie girls basketball team has fought its way back into district title contention.

Riding a two-game winning streak into Tuesday’s game at Rider, the Lady Bulldogs upset the No. 23 Lady Raiders 50-46 to pull within a game of the 4-5A lead heading into Friday’s home matchup against district leader Cooper.

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by Daniel Youngblood

GAME STORY: Abilene High boys rally past Richland to stay perfect in 3-6A

The Abilene High boys basketball team had its mettle tested by a desperate North Richland Hills Richland squad Tuesday night at Eagle Gym and came through in the clutch with a gutsy 54-50 victory.

After watching a 34-26 third-quarter lead turn into a six-point deficit (44-38) by the six-minute mark of the fourth, the Eagles closed the game on a 16-6 run to improve to 20-8 on the year and stay perfect at 7-0 in District 3-6A play.

AHS tied the game at 45-all on Jalen McGee’s floater with 3:34 to play and saw a 3-pointer by Richland’s Ikechi Osondu knot the score at 50-all with 1:56 remaining. But Khristian Johnson’s corner 3 at the 1:27 mark put the Eagles back on top, and Joe Joe Escobedo blocked a 3-point attempt in the waning seconds to end the Rebels’ comeback bid. 

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by Daniel Youngblood

GAME STORY: Freshman Speights fuels Cooper girls past Aledo, into sole possession of 4-5A lead

Trailing Aledo 4-2 after a defensive first quarter, the Cooper girls basketball team needed a spark Tuesday at Cougar Gym. 

They got it from freshman Kyla Speights.

The speedy 5-foot-2 point guard scored 12 of her game-high 16 points in the second quarter, including eight during a 12-0 run to start the period, to give the the Lady Cougars a lead they’d never relinquish in 37-30 win.

The victory avenged Cooper’s only district loss — a 50-45 defeat on Jan. 10 at Aledo — and, as it would turn out, was enough to put coach Arsenio Geter’s team alone atop the District 4-5A standings thanks to Wylie’s 50-46 at Wichita Falls Rider on Tuesday.

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by Mike Lee, Special to Big Country Preps

FEATURE: Hanson sisters lead No. 9 Haskell’s 20-game win streak

The Haskell Maidens — one of the Big Country’s most consistent girls basketball programs over the last decade — have won 20 consecutive games this season, including their first five District 8-2A games by an average of 37 points.

The Maidens, 23-3 overall and 5-0 in district after Friday’s 53-32 win at Albany, are seeking their sixth consecutive district championship. Haskell was ranked No. 9 in last week’s Texas Association of Basketball Coaches Class 2A poll.

There are multiple reasons for this season’s success under new head coach Michael Skelton, but high on the list is the performance of sisters Landry Hanson and Delaney — or Laney — Hanson. Landry, a 5-foot-8 senior guard, is averaging 15.1 points, 6.5 rebounds and 4.2 steals. Laney, a 5-11 sophomore forward, is averaging 15.5 points, 8.4 rebounds and 4.4 steals.

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by Evan Ren

EVAN REN: This week in Big Country girls basketball (Jan. 27-Feb. 2)

One more week of January hoops in the Big Country before we had down the February home stretch an into postseason play. 

Can you believe it? Blink and it will be here. 

Again, Big Country Preps will hit the road each Tuesday and Friday night to cover the top matchups in the area. 

Let’s have a quick look at last week’s highlights and what’s on tap over the next seven days. 

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by Evan Ren

FEATURE: Anson getting its money’s worth out of Dollar in dual hoops resurgence

ANSON — Between teaching class, doing the laundry, grading papers, meeting with parents, studying video, running tournaments and in some cases, driving the team bus, a basketball coach’s life is arduous to begin with.

Now try doubling it. 

While it may be common for a handful of individuals to accept the challenge of coaching a boys and girls program simultaneously, only a precious few succeed at both over the long haul. 

Anson’s Ryan Dollar, however, is currently making a strong argument that it can be done — leading a dual AHS hoops resurgence that has both the boys and girls programs challenging for playoff spots.   

Continue reading “FEATURE: Anson getting its money’s worth out of Dollar in dual hoops resurgence” →

by Daniel Youngblood

LOCAL HOOPS ROUNDUP: Wylie girls, boys earn sweep at Wichita Falls High

WICHITA FALLS — The Wylie girls basketball team picked up its second consecutive win Friday, following last week’s win over Aledo with a 75-18 drubbing of Wichita Falls High.

The Lady Bulldogs, now 15-13 overall, outscored the Lady Coyotes 23-7 in the first quarter and poured it on from there to improve to 2-2 in District 4-5A play.

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by Evan Ren

GAME STORY: Jaybirds sweep Paducah in varsity doubleheader

JAYTON — In the realm of Big Country 1A basketball, matchups don’t get much bigger the visit No. 5 Paducah paid eighth-ranked Jayton on Friday before a packed house at the JHS gym. 

Pecos Smith and Tripp Scott scored 16 and 13 points respectively and Tye Scogin tossed in 10 to lead Jayton (20-5, 3-0 District 15-1A), which took control of the game with a 17-5 first quarter and managed to hold for a 46-37 win. 

Paducah, which trailed by 17 points at the end of the third quarter, began a late rally behind full-court defensive pressure, eventually cutting the lead to seven with a jumper from Mark Flemons with just under two minutes to play. But the Dragons never got any closer — falling victim to a combination of cold shooting down the stretch, three Jayton free throws and a jumper by Scott. 

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by Daniel Youngblood

GAME STORY: Stamford boys pull away from Hawley, take lead in 8-2A title race

STAMFORD — With the score tied at 14 after a quarter, the Stamford boys basketball team outscored Hawley 16-7 in the second to get the separation it needed to coast to a 68-53 home win Friday night in a key District 8-2A matchup.

With the Bulldogs and Bearcats opening the night as the only two teams without a loss in 8-2A play, Stamford’s win put coach Dean Edwards’ squad a game ahead of Hawley in the league standings with seven regular-season contests remaining.

Senior post Austin Brewer led the way for the Bulldogs, scoring a game-high 27 points before fouling out early in the fourth quarter. His work inside helped put the Bearcats in early foul trouble, forcing coach Matt Preston out of his normal substitution patterns by the start of the second quarter.

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Mary Mosley
by Brandon McAuliffe

BREAKING: Eula honors an icon, renames Pirate Gymnasium

It was a secret that was kept for three months and in the end, Mary Mosley was caught completely off-guard with a homecoming surprise that will never be forgotten.

With two brothers, a sister, her daughter, two grandchildren and two great-grandchildren in attendance, Eula’s longtime bookkeeper was surprised by Eula boys basketball coach and athletic director Josh Fostel pulling off a stunner for the ages.

Fostel honored Mosley, who has kept Eula’s scorebook for the past 41 seasons, by having Pirate Gymnasium renamed Mary Mosley Gymnasium on Friday night between games of the Pirates’ District 20-1A doubleheader against Ranger.

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by Evan Ren

BIG COUNTRY GIRLS STATISTICAL LEADERS (Scoring, rebounds, assists and steals through Jan. 23)

Big Country Preps publishes area boys and girls basketball statistical leaders each Thursday at 7 p.m.

This database will be continually updated for our subscribers throughout the remainder of the season, using only those statistics submitted by area coaches.

Teams that do not submit their statistics in a given week will not be listed when our stats are posted, but will be added to the lists below as they are received in the coming days. 

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by Daniel Youngblood

FEATURE: Multi-talented junior Willis fueling Cooper girls’ resurgence

Coming off an upset win over No. 13 Wichita Falls Rider on Tuesday, the Cooper girls basketball team is in the midst of a surprising resurgence under first-year coach Arsenio Geter. 

At 21-8 overall, the Lady Cougars have already doubled last year’s win total. And at 3-1 in District 4-5A play, they’re in legitimate contention for their first district title in more than a decade.

At the heart of that rise has been a talented collection of girls who have bought in to a rapidly changing culture both on the court and inside the locker room. And at the heart of that team, Geter said, is junior guard/forward Jennika Willis.

Willis, who possesses one of the most versatile skill sets of any player in the Big Country, has been a steady producer for Geter and the Lady Coogs since the season tipped off in November. But her ability to stuff the stat sheet is only a small part of what she brings to the table.

Continue reading “FEATURE: Multi-talented junior Willis fueling Cooper girls’ resurgence” →

by Daniel Youngblood

BCP Podcast No. 78: Eula’s Josh Fostel talks Pirate hoops with Evan, Daniel

Under longtime boys basketball coach Josh Fostel, the Eula Pirates have been among the best and most consistent Class 1A programs in the state. And EHS, which reached the state semifinals in 2007 before winning the state championship in 2011, has another strong team this year, sitting at 19-6 after routing Moran on Tuesday.

Earlier this week, Fostel took a few minutes to chat with Big Country Preps’ Evan Ren and Daniel Youngblood about this year’s team, its 62-56 upset of Class 4A Brownwood last week and the program he’s built for this week’s Capital Farm Credit Wednesday Night Podcast.

Also in this episode, Evan and Daniel discuss some of the biggest boys and and girls basketball storylines of the season so far.

by Daniel Youngblood

GAME STORY: Cooper girls stymie No. 13 Rider, score upset victory

First-year Cooper girls basketball coach Arsenio Geter felt confident in his game plan heading into Tuesday’s home matchup with No. 13 Wichita Falls Rider. The only question was whether his Lady Cougars could execute it well enough to pull off the program’s biggest upset in years.

The strategy: to use junior Dazz Larkins’ leaping ability to deny Rider forward Jalynn Bristow the lob pass inside and try to contain the standout freshmen enough to force her teammates to win the game for the Lady Raiders.

The result: A 46-30 Cooper victory that saw Larkins outshine Bristow on both ends of the floor and the Lady Coogs use a 21-8 run through the fourth quarter to pull away for an impressive victory at Cougar Gym.

Continue reading “GAME STORY: Cooper girls stymie No. 13 Rider, score upset victory” →

by Brandon McAuliffe

GAME STORY: Abilene High boys hold off Euless Trinity in District 3-6A action

Abilene High boys basketball coach Justin Reese believes Eagle Gym provides his squad one of the greatest home court advantages in the state.

A second-quarter 3-pointer by D.J. Modest sent the gym into a frenzy after cutting Euless Trinity’s lead to 15-14, and that set the tone for the rest of the game as the Eagles finished the first half of District 3-6A play at 6-0 with a thrilling 56-50 win Tuesday night.

“We are so grateful as a program because our crowd has been awesome since last year,” Reese said. “They give us a really big home-court advantage, which is how it used to be in the 80s and 90s, and so we are kind of getting that back. We are a hard out in Eagle Gym because our crowd gives us great energy and our kids play really hard.”

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by Mike Lee, Special to Big Country Preps

FEATURE: Hermleigh’s Benitez returns from two ACL surgeries

It’s tough enough to rehab from surgery for 6-9 months and return to competitive sports after suffering one torn ACL knee injury. Ryleigh Benitez of Hermleigh has done it twice within the last two years.

“I’ve never seen anybody come back from two torn ACLs to the same knee. After the second time, most people would call it quits, but Ryleigh is a tough kid,” said Duane Hopper, Hermleigh’s third-year girls’ basketball coach.

“She tore it the first time in the summer after her sophomore year (2018). She did it the second time in the spring of her junior year (2019) right after track season.”

Benitez, a 5-foot-7 senior who can play any position for the two-time defending Region II-1A champion Lady Cardinals, returned after her first torn ACL for the second half of the 2018-2019 basketball season. After the second ACL tear to her left knee last April, she was back for the start of preseason practices last October.

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by Evan Ren

BIG COUNTRY PREPS PLAYER OF THE WEEK: Eula junior leads Pirates to upset, claims weekly accolade

Within Eula circles, it may not have felt like an upset. But to the Big Country at large, the Class 1A Eula boys’ 62-56 win over a very good Class 4A team from Brownwood (19-5) was nothing short of eye-popping. 

Nonetheless, it happened, with junior guard Dakota Boles packed enough punch that night to earn our Big Country Preps Player of the Week award for the week ending Jan. 18. 

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