Mother Nature did her best to bring the high school basketball season to a standstill, sending a winter storm that put most Big Country teams on the shelf for a week. But the action around that unexpected break gives us plenty to talk about in this week’s look at the area boys basketball scene.
With a number of excellent (and meaningful) games last week and some big matchups slated for the next few days, the area district races remain as intriguing as ever.
Let’s go ahead now and take a look at the biggest games the area slate has to offer this week and some of the outcomes last week that helped shape the weeks to come.
Ysée Le Borgne may feel like a fish out of water living in Ballinger, Texas. After all, the 16-year-old foreign exchange student and native of Lille, France is more than 5,000 miles and (needless to say), a major cultural shift away from her hometown. 
Nobody played a tougher schedule over the holidays than the Wall boys. And nobody had a bigger impact on their successful run through a brutal five-game stretch than 6-foot-7 big man Paxton Brake who takes our first Big Country Preps Player of the Week for 2026.
In helping the Jayton Jaybirds to a second-straight state title last week, senior running back Bode Ham not only produced the top game in our coverage area, but his performance will likely remain part of six-man lore forever. 
If you were told that the Big Country had a possible boys basketball star in the making, where would you guess he was from? 
A stunning reversal in momentum saw Stephenville advance to the Class 4A DI state semifinals on Friday when the Yellow Jackets overcame a 21-7 second-quarter deficit with 34 uananswered points in a 41-21 win over Canyon West Plains at Lubbock’s Lowrey Field. 
Big-time performances are the norm this year for the 13-0 Brock Eagles, who earned a trip to the Region I-4A DII championship game with last week’s 66-3 win over Seminole. 
Not only is our Big Country Preps Player of the Week holding down the top spot with big numbers, but his performance in Graham’s 35-28 area round win over Lubbock Cooper Liberty was a virtual seminar on poise. 
Stephenville 49, Burnet 0 — Trot Jordan threw for 222 yards and three scores and rushed for 53 yards and another TD as Stephenville improved to 10-0. 
It’s been a good while since a Goldthwaite Eagle snagged our Big Country Preps Player of the Week award in any sport. But sophomore Owen Campbell obliterated that streak with a fabulous effort in a 61-0 rout of Meridian on Friday. 
Stephenville 49, Brownwood 0 — For a complete report on this game, please read Brandon McAuliffe’s 
What more can be said about the performance of Wall senior Landon York last week other than it was a model of efficiency?
Brownwood 38, Burnet 7 — Judson Coalson threw for 116 yards and two scores and Levi Pearson rushed for 63 yards and another TD to lead Brownwood to an easy win on the road.
It’s mid-October, the weather is cooling, we have a pretty good idea of what our top football teams are and as tradition would have it, now is the time when we start talking about everyone’s postseason chances. 
Stephenville 65, Marble Falls 7 — The Yellow Jackets (7-0, 2-0) raced out to a 49-0 lead by the break before coasting home for the win.
Brownwood 42, Lampasas 39 — Judson Coalson threw for 295 yards and five scores as Brownwood knocked off previously unbeaten Lampasas at Gordon Wood Stadium. 
The season’s midpoint usually offers little in the way of big-time performances, with most of the area teams taking a bye week prior to the opening of district play. 
A year ago, the Ruston, La., Bearcats brought 11 DI players to the Lone Star State and beat three quality programs in Longview (21-10), Midland Legacy (38-6) and Stephenville (63-17). Yet they finished 11-3 with three losses to Louisiana teams and failed to win their state title. 
Stephenville 64, Waco La Vega 28 — Zyler McClendon rushed for 207 yards and three scores and Trot Jordan threw for 235 yards and three more TDs as Stephenville routed La Vega. 
Wylie junior Haddie Mock was at her very best against difficult competition last week, helping the Lady Bulldogs to wins over seventh-ranked 3A Bushland (25-8) and 21st-ranked 4A Stephenville last week. 
Waco La Vega 38, Brownwood 16 
Since losing their season opener to Peaster (34-0), the Tolar Rattlers (2-1) have not only managed to improve, but they’re rapidly gaining momentum to go with that progress.
Brownwood 34, Glen Rose 28 — Judson Coalson threw for 174 yards and two scores to help the Lions (1-2) earn their first win of the season. 
Wall 35, Brownwood 10 — Landon York hit 18 of 21 passes for 249 yards and three scores to keep the Hawks (2-0) unbeaten. 
STEPHENVILLE — Mother Nature has no sense of nostalgia. 
Milestones catch our eye when selecting our Big Country Preps Player of the Week, as do great weekly performances. But when both occur at the same time, you can rest assured that player will be in the running for the top spot.