The Austin-area high school boys basketball season continues to heat up with tournaments, key nondistrict games and District 25-6A having already played a significant chunk of its 16-game slate. Stony Point, Round Rock and Westwood are all off to impressive 4-0 starts that district, which sets up some key games in a few weeks in […]
The Austin-area high school boys basketball season continues to heat up with tournaments, key nondistrict games and District 25-6A having already played a significant chunk of its 16-game slate. Stony Point, Round Rock and Westwood are all off to impressive 4-0 starts that district, which sets up some key games in a few weeks in the first round-robin. While most teams have Tuesday off, the intriguing District 25-5A kicks off play, and San Marcos and Johnson meet in a crucial District 29-6A opener.
The Austin American-Statesman takes a look at teams and players who impressed for the week of Dec. 8-14:
Brentwood Christian
The Bears (15-6) topped St. Stephen’s 61-51 behind Blake Petty’s double-double of 16 points and 12 rebounds and Zach Czerlinsky’s 16 points, then defeated Veritas Academy 84-33 thanks to Petty’s 16 points and Bryant Herring tallying 14 points and eight rebounds. Marcus Zelee had a good all-around gave against Veritas with 10 points, six assists and five rebounds.
Dripping Springs
The Tigers (10-7) beat a pair of former district opponents in knocking off Johnson 59-43 and Anderson 58-27. Judson Loe continued his season-long scoring binge by averaging 20.5 points in the two wins, with Rushton Bridge averaging 14 points. Stone Patterson recorded 13 points, four rebounds and three assists in the victory over the Trojans.
East View
The Patriots (13-4) went 5-1 on the week to improve to 13-5 overall thanks to a 69-62 win over Del Valle and a 4-1 showing in the Marble Falls tournament.
Terrion Benson averaged 16 ppg and was named to the all-tournament team. Jayden Prioleau’s 23 points and Isaiah Villegas’ 18 points led the team against the Cardinals.
Glenn
Dallas Hernandez and Josh Davison were selected to the all-tournament team as the Grizzlies went 4-1 at the Marble Falls tournament.
Liberty Hill
The red-hot Panthers (12-4) won the Glen Rose tournament with guard Marchel Timmons taking MVP honors after averaging 11 points and six assists. Christian Faulkner also earned all-tournament honors after averaging 10 ppg.
Round Rock
Round Rock (15-3) continues to prove its preseason doubters wrong after district wins over Cedar Ridge and Manor. Sol Barnett, Rowan Mandler and Jonathan Wenthe all reached double digits in scoring in both wins.
In the 57-27 victory against the Raiders, Barnett and Mandler had 12 points apiece and Wenthe added 11, while in the 70-30 win over the Mustangs Wenthe tallied 14 points, Barnett finished with 13 and Mandler added 10.
Stony Point
The Tigers used suffocating defense to beat McNeil 100-39 and Cedar Ridge 86-24 in district play to improve to 15-2 overall.
Landon Short hit a school-record 11 3-pointers and scored 37 points against the Mavericks, with Richard Claude joining him in double figures with 15 points.
Elijah Clemons (22 points, three steals), Uzziah Buntyn (20 points, five steals), Short (18 points, five steals) and Devin Lineberger (10 points) all excelled versus the Raiders.
St. Michael’s
The Warriors moved to 16-2 overall with a 56-44 win over Lake Travis as Nolan Barkley scored 15 points, Bo Ogden finished with 14 points and Aiden Disu added 11 points.
Westwood
The Warriors (18-0) stayed undefeated with district wins over Manor and Hutto. Dillon Garza poured in 22 points and Thomas Burke tallied 18 points during their 82-37 victory against the Mustangs, with John McNair and Indy McBrearty each finishing with 16 points in the 66-41 win over the Hippos. Luke Carpenter added 12 points versus Hutto.
Vandegrift
The Vipers (12-5) recorded two key District 25-6A wins by defeating Vista Ridge 49-48 in overtime and McNeil 57-47. Hayden Brannan hit two free throws with 15 seconds left against the Rangers to give Vandegrift the lead before the Vipers defense made a stop down the stretch. Trent Workman and Trey Block both tallied 17 points in the win over the Mavericks.
Players
Joshua Baskin, Bowie: Averaged 21.5 ppg as the Bulldogs split games against San Marcos and Johnson. He had 18 points during a 57-56 win against the Rattlers, with teammate Derrick Osobase adding 12 points. Lamin Jabbi tallied 11 points and six boards in the loss to Johnson.
Hunter Davis, Westlake: Hit 10 3-pointers and scored 32 points in the Chaps’ 69-62 win over Killeen Shoemaker in the Cy-Fair tournament.
Gage Faglie, Leander: Earned all-tournament honors at the Lion Classic. Teamed up with Ephrance Steele to help Leander overcome injuries to key players and have a 3-2 week.
Kenji Franklin, Cedar Creek: Recorded a double-double of 22 points and 14 rebounds and added six assists to lead the Eagles past Hendrickson.
Cash Good, San Marcos: Went off for 37 points and added four steals, four rebounds and three assists in a 77-72 win over Del Valle. Also tallied 17 points and eight assists against Bowie.
Nabil Ismail, Cedar Park: The junior is having a great year for the Timberwolves averaging 19.2 points and 7.5 rebounds through 13 games.
Isaiah Kinard and Ja’Den Stiggers, Manor New Tech: Kinard recorded 40 points and 19 rebounds and Stiggers went off for 27 points and grabbed 10 boards in a district-opening win over Northeast.
Adrian Mathis, Lake Travis: Recorded 22 points, seven rebounds, five assists and two steals to lead the Cavs past Converse Judson 57-53. A pair of teammates also excelled, with Jaxon Shaver adding 11 points and five rebounds and Kyle Kihlberg finishing with a double-double of 10 points and 10 rebounds.
Jaivion Martin, Pflugerville: Tallied 18 points in a loss against Leander.
Mack Martin, Johnson: The sophomore tallied 21 points, seven rebounds and four assists to lead three Jaguars in double figures during a 64-61 win over Bowie. Myles Fernandez (13 points) and Jayvonne Flores (11) also reached double digits.
Eli Meyers and Nomar Ruvalcaba, Cedar Creek: Meyers drained five 3-pointers and Ruvalcaba tallied a double-double of 11 points and 12 rebounds and added eight assists in a win over Hendrickson.
Donovan Riddick, San Marcos: Fired in 26 points versus Bowie.
