Lady Tigers in 3-way tie for second place
TEXARKANA, Texas — Texas High knocked off second-place Longview, 43-40, in a crucial District 15-5A girls basketball game Friday night in the Tiger Center.
The win catapulted the Lady Tigers (16-9) into a threeway tie for second place with Whitehouse and Longview. All three of those teams are 9-4 in district with one game to play.
Tyler (27-9, 13-0) has already clinched the district championship.
Tuesday’s regular-season finales will determine second through fourth place.
Texas High defeated previous No. 2 Longview and now must notch it up another level to face the champion Lions, who are riding a 19-game winning streak.
“We’re excited about being tied for second place and we know we’ve got the toughest closing game at Tyler, which is honestly the best team in our district,” said Lady Tigers coach Shonda Wilson.
The Tigers, however, aren’t going to Tyler Tuesday to surrender.
“We’re going to fight them for every point and we’re certainly not intimidated by them,” Wilson added. “We played a back-and-forth game in the first round, but Tyler eased away from us in the fourth quarter.”
Tyler went on to win 71-58. “If we continue to play like we’ve been playing. If we execute and don’t turn the ball over, we should be all right,” coach Wilson said. “Tuesday’s game at Tyler should be a battle. We’ll be ready to play, and you never can tell what may happen, especially when a team gets momentum on its side.”
Texas High plans to savor Friday’s win over Longview. The two teams split a twogame series, but Whitehouse beat Texas High twice, giving Whitehouse an advantage over the Tigers.
Texas High’s leaders all season showed up in usual form against Longview.
Sereniti Collins and Taryne Stiger, both sophomores, scored 11 and 10 points, respectively.
Anasia Wilcox, a 6-foot-3 senior, also performed well under the basket, her coach said.
“She doesn’t get the credit she deserves,” Wilson said. “She plays hard every game and she’s all in, whether it’s fighting for a tough rebound or using her height and muscle to block a shot.
“She’s a tough competitor and she loves to win.”
BOYS LONGVIEW 87, TEXAS HIGH 42
LONGVIEW, Texas — Longview got off to a strong start and pulled away from Texas High in the second half as the Lobos won the District 15-5A boys basketball game, 87-42, in Lobo Coliseum Friday.
Longview improves its season record to 27-3 and its district slate to 10-1. The Tigers drop to 12-19 and 2-9.
Longview, which shares the district lead with Mount Pleasant, will travel to the Titus County school on Tuesday in a showdown. The Lobos knocked off defend league champion MP, 4439, in Longview. The Lobos’ lone district loss was at Tyler, 53–49.
Texas High had some tough times against the Lobos as the hosts went up 9-0.
The Tigers stormed back with a 10-2 run to close the gap to 11-10. Alex Orr triggered Texas High’s response with 5 points, Trevon Ellis and David Potter contributed a field goal and Justin Brown made 1-of-2 free throws.
Later on, Alex Orr’s younger brother, Adam, was fouled on an unsuccessful 3-point attempt at the 7:36 mark of the second stanza. Adam made all three free throws as Longview’s lead dwindled to 17-13.
The quick and physical Lobos then went uptempo to take a 40-24 halftime lead.
Davis Justice ripped the nets for 16 points in the third quarter as Longview took a commanding 64-33 lead into the final frame.
Alex Orr led the Tigers with 9 points and Adam Orr added 8. Justice topped the Lobos with 18 points.