The official halfway mark of the District 15-4A boys basketball chase will be reached on Friday, but the 7th-ranked Paris Wildcats may have emphatically slammed the door on any obstacle in the way of repeating as district champions with a 66-43 win over the Pleasant Grove Hawks Tuesday night in Texarkana.
Prior to tipoff optimism was high among Hawk fandom who saw their team make its debut at No. 24 in the weekly state coaches’ rankings. They packed Hawk Gym for the showdown between the district’s two remaining unbeaten teams and saw 6-8 senior center Cross Bright score the game’s first two points.
Pictured: Wildcats seem to be everywhere in opponents’ eyes this year as this photo from Paris’ win over Pittsburg illustrates. The Cats’ defense held another high-powered offense under 50 points Tuesday in a 66-43 win over Pleasant Grove. Photo by Joe Watson
Then the euphoria came crashing down to reality in the form of a 19-0 Paris run that realistically put the game away. Junior Jalon Pipkins drained an NBA 3-pointer to end the first quarter with Paris holding a commanding 22-4 lead. It was over.
“That first quarter was a thing of beauty,” Paris coach Billy Mack Steed said of his team’s start. As usual, his defense drew the lion’s share of credit. “When we play good defense, it’s tough for teams to score 60 on us.
“It was the best we’ve played since the first of the year.”
Neither team could mount a significant scoring streak the rest of the way as the Paris margin remained consistent in a range of 18 to 26 points. Once again, all five Paris starters, the 5 Js, managed double figures. Sophomore Josh Robinson and senior Jordan Embry each had 16, Jared Embry scored 13, Pipkins 11, and senior Jalen Wallace 10.
Bright topped the Hawks with 12, and senior Tanner Cole scored 11, but dangerous outside shooters Connor Ouelette and Trey Reynolds drew special focus from the Paris defense and were each held to 2 points.
The win leaves Paris (24-2 overall) in the district driver’s seat at 4-0, while PG (18-6) falls to 3-1. In other district games Tuesday, North Lamar (1-3) beat Liberty-Eylau (1-3), 62-41, while Pittsburg (2-2) topped Atlanta (1-3), 63-40.
The Cats close out the first half of district Friday against Atlanta in the Wildcat Gym. They already have their two toughest road games (PG and NL) out of the way, while the Hawks still have trips left to Lamar Country to face NL and Paris.
Article by Tim Taylor.