Friday, Nov. 28, 2008

With tournaments near, teams prep

By BRIAN HERNALSTEEN

News-Mirror Writer

The boys hit the floor Tuesday night right before the Thanksgiving break, with three basketball teams coming away with a win and the other getting outgunned by a final shot in overtime.

Legacy 74, Midlothian 51: Eddie Leal’s 24 points would spark the Broncos (2-1) to victory Tuesday night at Legacy High School. Legacy didn’t start off the night too hot, trailing 11-9 after the first quarter. But the defense picked up, and it led to big runs and easy buckets for the Broncos.

"I just ran the transition game. We were able to get the easy buckets because we got up the floor and made them run end-to-end," Leal said. "We really turned up the defense in the second half, and I think that is what gave us the edge tonight."

The 13-4 run to start the second quarter showcased one of the area’s most smothering defenses. Turnover after turnover resulted in a four-point lead at the half for Legacy.

"We started off not mentally ready to play. We have to do it on the defensive end. Everything that we want to achieve starts on the defensive end. When we start to play defense and rebound, that is when you will see things turn in our favor," said Legacy coach Marchie Murdock. "You got to play 32 minutes, and that is what we got to fix. We can’t have lapses anymore. If we want to be at the level of the other teams in our district, that is what we have to do. We are still young, but we are also still working on that."

Legacy outscored Midlothian 23-9 and 21-14 in the final two quarters, thanks mostly to the tenacious defense.

It was a game filled with runs, and once the Broncos took a 38-32 lead in the third quarter, it would be the last time that Midlothian was close.

"As long as we stay pumped up on D, I really don’t think many teams can stop us," Leal said.

No other Bronco was in double digits in scoring, but the points were evenly distributed among the cast, with most scoring six, seven or eight points.

Legacy is participating in the Fantasy of Lights Tournament today and Saturday, a final tune-up before the MISD Tournament in December.

"When you host a tournament, you want to be that winning team from the tournament. It is going to be tough, with all the teams being at a good level and being well-coached," Murdock said. "We are going to come out with the expectations to win it, and that is something that would be great for our young program. If we could go in there and make some noise, it would be great for the school."

Grapevine 58, Mansfield 56 (OT): Grapevine guard Kody Diehm hit a runner in the lane with one second left in overtime to give the Mustangs a 58-56 victory against Mansfield (2-1) boys. Diehm and Mansfield’s Corey Anderson exchanged big shots all night, including 3-pointers just before the final basket. Diehm hit a 3-point with 25 seconds left, Anderson answered with 10 seconds to go, and out of a timeout, Diehm hit his runner in the lane. He finished with 21 points, and Anderson had 24 for Mansfield. —Angel Verdejo

Summit 80, South Grand Prairie 67: The point spread between the two teams in the second and third quarter was 50-21, and it would be the big difference Tuesday night in Summit’s (4-3) win. After trailing 25-18 after one quarter of play, the Jags would go on a run and prevail.

Eric Waters had 19 points and Daniel Ehambe had 15 points in the victory.

Timberview 70, Waxahachie 55: The Wolves (2-0) had a battle with Waxahachie (1-3) Tuesday night, with the score being tied at 19 after one quarter of play.

But the state’s 10th-ranked team turned it on in the second and fourth quarters, outscoring their opponents 39-16 in that stretch.

Cedric Ivory had 19 points, Jelon Hornbeak had 14 points and J.J. Williams had 17 points.