The Cooldown- Week 25
Cover Photo via the Dallas Morning News/ Rebecca Slezak
It is officially playoff time in Texas! The women are a week into the road to San Antonio and the men tip-off the playoffs on Monday night! The men start the road to San Antonio with the bi-district round while the women’s playoffs roll on with the regional quarterfinals to start the week off. Let’s recap some of the best action from last week and preview some upcoming playoff games!
Cedar Hill eliminates Sachse
Cedar Hill advanced to the regional quarterfinals after eliminating Sachse in a 46-45 thriller last Thursday night. Cedar Hill’s reward for its close win is a date with Duncanville on Monday night at Mansfield Legacy High School. Cedar Hill will need to defend Duncanville as well as it defended against Sachse last week. Duncanville defeated Mesquite Horn 62-44 to advance to the regional quarterfinals.
Micah Vaughn led Cedar Hill in scoring with 12 points, including the game-winning free-throws with two seconds left to give the Longhorns a one-point lead. Jadyn Atchison added nine points, six rebounds and four steals, including a steal on the ensuing inbounds pass with two seconds left to seal the game. Vivian Franklin also scored nine points and Kelis Grant chipped in eight points in the win. Londyn Oliphant and Crislyn Rose led Sachse with 11 points each and Charish Thompson scored eight points.
Denton Guyer beats McKinney for District Championship
The regular district schedule wasn’t enough to determine a champion in District 5-6A. Denton Guyer had a chance to clinch the district championship last Tuesday with a win over Prosper. Instead, Prosper defended its home court to force a tie for the last playoff spot in the district, but more on that later. Denton Guyer and McKinney elected to play a game, rather than flip a coin, to determine the District 5-6A Championship. Denton Guyer outlasted McKinney 67-55 to claim the top playoff seed. The Wildcats used a big second half to secure the win, outscoring the Lions 39-29 in the third and fourth quarters.
KyeRon Lindsay scored a game-high 21 points for Denton Guyer and he got plenty of help with three other players scoring in double-figures for the Wildcats. Jeremiah Green and Jace Wilson each scored 12 points and Jordan Lowery added 11 points. John Godfrey chipped in seven points for the Wildcats. Ja’Kobe Walter scored 19 points to lead McKinney and Alex Anamekwe was right on his heels with 18 points. Jacovey Campbell and Jackson Steele each added seven points for the Lions. Denton Guyer starts its playoff run against Lewisville on Tuesday night at Lake Dallas High School while McKinney will face Coppell at Prosper Rock Hill High School on Tuesday night.
Prosper beats Denton Braswell
Prosper claimed the final playoff spot in District 5-6A on Thursday night with a 53-43 win over Denton Braswell. The Eagles had to beat Denton Guyer on Tuesday and Denton Braswell on Thursday to earn the final playoff spot.
Jaxson Ford led Prosper with 18 points and 10 rebounds after also leading the Eagles in scoring against Denton Guyer. Brandt Evanson scored 12 points and Addison Harmon added 11 points to give Prosper three players in double-figures. Jaiden Blaylock paced Denton Braswell with 18 points and Jamien Turner scored 10 points. Dylan Smith scored nine points for the Bengals in the loss. Prosper’s reward for its efforts are a date with undefeated Plano on Monday night at Allen High School.
Men’s Bi-District Preview
Richardson and Duncanville both made deep playoff runs last season and both could make it to San Antonio again this year. That road starts for Richardson against Grand Prairie at Coppell High School on Monday night. Duncanville will have to wait an extra day to get its playoff run started with a bi-district matchup against Killeen Shoemaker at Waco Robinson on Tuesday night. Garland is another contender and will start its playoff run on Tuesday night against North Mesquite at Mesquite Poteet High School. Finley Bizjack and Byron Nelson will face Halton on Monday night at UT-Arlington at 6:30 before District 4-6 Champion Keller takes on Trinity at 8:00 at UT-Arlington.
In 5A, Aledo and Denton Ryan compete for a spot in the area round on Monday night at Keller Timber Creek High School. Birdville starts its playoff run on Tuesday night against Azle at Chisholm Trail High School. Mansfield Timberview finished its regular season with a 30-4 record and will take on Southwest on Monday night at 6:00 at the Wilkerson- Greines Activity Center. Mansfield Legacy and Arlington Heights face off at 7:30 on Monday night at Wilkerson- Greines. Mansfield Summit starts its playoff run on Tuesday night against Saginaw at the Arlington ISD Athletic Complex. South Oak Cliff and Woodrow Wilson play for a spot in the area round on Tuesday night at 6:30 at Ellis- Davis Fieldhouse. Kimball and Hillcrest will follow that game at 8:00. Lancaster’s playoff run will also tip-off on Tuesday night against Newman Smith at Irving High School.
Women’s Regional Quarterfinal Preview
The women’s slate is thinner than the men’s because they are farther along in the playoffs. That makes for some better matchups than we’ll see in the bi-district round for the men. L.D. Bell (28-8) takes on rival Trinity (20-13) on Tuesday night at 6:30 at UT-Arlington. Donavia Hall scored her 1,000th career point in the area round and will lead Plano East (33-4) against Denton Braswell (33-2) on Tuesday night at 6:30 at Frisco Reedy High School. Jules LaMendola will lead Coppell (37-1) against South Grand Prairie (31-4) on Monday night at 6:00 at Carrollton Ranchview High School. As mentioned above, Duncanville (32-6) takes on district rival Cedar Hill (26-10) on Monday night at 6:30 at Mansfield Legacy High School.
There are several games to watch in 5A in the regional quarterfinals as well. Mansfield Timberview (25-8) takes on Mansfield Legacy (22-14) at 7:00 on Monday night at Mansfield High School. Region II is heating up as well, as Kyla Deck and Frisco Lone Star (24-9) take on Jasmyn Lott and Frisco Memorial (33-5) on Tuesday night at Denton Braswell High School. Meanwhile, Ciara Harris and McKinney North (32-1) will face-off against Jazzy Owens- Barnett and Frisco Liberty (33-5) on Tuesday night at 7:00 at McKinney High School.
Player of the Week
My Player of the Week is Frisco Memorial’s Jasmyn Lott! Frisco Memorial advanced to the regional quarterfinals after a 44-42 win over Wylie East in the bi-district round and a 55-41 win over South Oak Cliff in the area round! Lott led Frisco Memorial in scoring in both games, finishing with a game-high 20 points against Wylie East as the only player in double-figures for Frisco Memorial. Lott followed that performance up with a team-high 15 points against South Oak Cliff!
Cover Photo of the Cedar Hill women's basketball team courtesy of the Dallas Morning News and Staff Photographer Rebecca Slezak.