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After each round in the playoffs, we will recap with 10 main headlines from the playoff action and dissect results from each classification.
Game Times & Locations
Ice, Ice baby
The weather took a toll on a thick slate of games for Thursday as many games across the state, primarily in the South Plains, Metroplex, Permian Basin, Big County and Central Texas were postponed due to incoming winter weather.
https://www.txhsgbb.com/2021/02/13/uil-to-extend-playoff-round-certification-dates-due-to-weather/
6A
Reagan prevail in Alamo City heavyweight clash
28-6A was not able to complete the district season and with the end-of-season tournament that took place to replace the second half of district play, there would be shuffling expected in the placement of teams.
With Reagan finishing third, it set up a big bi-district clash with Cibolo Steele, who also had high expectations entering the postseason, picking up key wins including a district win against Judson.
Getting behind Samantha Wagner’s 19 points in addition to Madilynn Jones adding 15, the Rattlers picked up a key victory in the first round of the playoffs, 45-34. Defense was a key part in the victory as well, holding Steele to 12 points in the first half.
Hebron, Skyline highlight key upsets
Guyer had to play catch-up for most of the game with Hebron in a game that saw the Lady Wildcats out of sync in the portion of the season where anything can happen.
Hebron, the four seed from 6-6A, advance to play Arlington Martin in the section of the bracket that is now open to Lady Warriors, Plano East and Irving MacArthur.
The Lakeview Centennial/Skyline game was close to not taking place at all. According to the Dallas Morning-News, inclement weather prevented Skyline from being on the 30-minute pregame warmups as the team struggled to leave the school as the bus slid on the ice in the parking lot. The first thought that came into Skyline’s head coach Melonie Hopson’s mind was rescheduling.
Then, the unthinkable happened.
Skyline’s defense turned up in the second quarter, forcing 18 turnovers that led to a 49-42 victory.
Houston area powers advance
The area round matchups in the Houston area have high anticipation in the top half of the Region III bracket.
Fort Bend Dulles continue their undefeated run, topping Katy and sets up a highly-anticipated matchup with Jersey Village, who have been in the top 10 in the statewide rankings. A young Spring Branch Memorial team picked up a win over Houston Bellaire and now face 19-6A district champion Katy Tompkins. Regional power Clear Springs will have their hands full next week with a clash with Atascocita.
An upset did take place in the bottom half of the bracket, with West Brook edging out Pasadena Dobie, 41-39, and opening up the fourth quadrant of the bracket.
5A
Defending state champs survive scare
Frisco Liberty are not the same team from last year but remain to be a tough out for opposition. But Ross Reedy know how to coach in tight situations. The Lady Redhawks outscored McKinney North 15-5, in the third quarter in what was a key stretch of the game.
Jazzy Owens-Barnett led the team in scoring with 15 points, Lily Ziemkiewicz added eight in the winning effort.
Region I race heats up
The big names in Region I all picked up victories as Lubbock Cooper, Amarillo, Lake Dallas and Wichita Falls Rider cruised to the second round.
The Lady Pirates of Lubbock Cooper will be matched in the paint as they face Andress in the area round on 6 p.m., Tuesday in Fort Stockton. The Lady Sandies will take on Canutillo, who edged out a physical team in Burges in overtime.
Hanks, a darkhorse pick out in El Paso, advanced to the area round after defeating El Paso High and are also playing with a good amount of confidence and face off against another hipster pick in Plainview.
4A
Hardin-Jefferson, Lumberton cruise
Hardin-Jefferson are one of the best in-form teams in the state outside of 6A & 5A classifications and are a state title contender in Region III. Getting behind Duke commit Ashlon Jackson’s 19 points and 13 steals, the top-ranked Lady Hawks topped Bridge City 90-19. MaKenna Henry added 16 points, Kendall Sneed with 15, Molly Beavers and India McMahan tallied 12 respectively.
Lumberton used a hard-nosed defense and sharp shooting with a 60-38 victory over Hargrave in a tough environment. The Lady Raiders now face Houston Kashmere, the only Houston ISD team to win their respective bi-district matchup so far.
Rockport-Fulton remains red hot
The Lady Pirates are playing as well as anybody in the Coastal Bend and are poised to make noise in the region as they stretched their winning streak to 19 straight wins with a 64-45 victory over La Marque. With an experienced coach that has seen the big stage in Morgan Hale, the pieces are in place for a potential deep run in the postseason.
3A
The wild west effect
It is clear that Region I is one of the toughest regions in all of Texas and opening night showed how crazy the region can get.
Bowie edged out Brock in a key result, 36-34 and are playing well as of recently. Jim Ned, who also won over Reagan County, are grouped in the same quadrant of the bracket and the draw potentially have opened up for the Lady Indians in what has been a big week.
Canadian and Shallowater are eyeing a potential clash in the regional quarterfinals but Shallowater will face a tough test in order to advance to the regional rounds as Littlefield has been recording key results and with an explosive offense.
Ponder, Winnsboro record big wins
Early on, blowouts are expected but statements were made as both Ponder and Winnsboro earned big wins in the bi-district round as the two teams look to be on a collision course in the regional semifinal round.
2A
A 19-year wait is over
If it is anyone that is taking this week’s team of the week award, it would belong to Bremond. Head coach Nathan White won his first gold ball in his young coaching career as Bremond topped a traditionally strong Crawford team, 46-29, to advance to the area round. Next up for the Lady Tigers is 20-2A district champions Centerville as an upstart program that is primarily known for football, is showing that their girls’ basketball program is pretty good as well.
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