With the game on the line Friday night, Yoakum senior guard Jamar Hopkins hit the game-winning free throw to complete the Bulldogs’ 56-55 comeback win over Edna.
The Bulldogs, who are tied for first place in District 25-3A with Rice Consolidated and Columbus, started fast and built a 16-8 first quarter lead over Edna, which lost freshman starting point guard Jayfus Smith to injury during the first few minutes.
But the Cowboys shuffled their lineup and responded by outscoring Yoakum 27-10 in the second quarter to take a 35-26 halftime lead, which they maintained until the Bulldogs began to chip away at the lead in the fourth quarter and caught up.
Senior guard Braylen Harris, who shifted over from shooting guard to take on much of the point guard duties after Smith went down, led the team with 22 points, including 10 points during the second quarter comeback. Senior Brady Peters poured in 13 points and junior Kalub Caesar scored nine.
Xzavier Barnett led the Bulldogs with 18 points, Hopkins had 14 and Gage Harrison added nine.
“The effort was there, and the execution was there,” Edna Coach Sheldon Moor said afterward. “The two areas that cost us the game were defensive rebounds and free throw shooting. If you win the free throws, the rebounds, and the turnover battle, you usually win the game, and I think we lost two of those three tonight.
“The free throws are what I think we’re going to look back on in that one and kick ourselves for.”
Overall, Edna made 4-of-10 free throw attempts, while Yoakum made 15 of its 22 free throws. Outside shooting fueled the comeback, as the Cowboys made outscored Yoakum 33-9 from beyond the arc, including five in the second quarter alone.
The second quarter comeback started with defensive pressure and turnovers converted to baskets.
Following a Yoakum dunk, Edna post Braidan Hernandez scored under the basket to cut the lead to 18-10 and kick off a 9-0 run that saw Caesar splash a three-pointer, Harris hit a layup, and Hernandez score again on a putback to cut the lead to 18-17 and force a Yoakum timeout at 5:56.
The Cowboys took the lead with a steal and layup by Peters after the timeout.
Barnett hit a free throw for Yoakum to tie the game at 19-19, then scored again to push the Bulldogs in front, 21-19, but a Harris three at the 4:10 mark gave Edna the lead again, 22-21.
The teams traded baskets and turnovers until Harris drove the lane and drew a foul with 2:05 left, making one of two free throws to tie the game again at 26-26. Peters buried a three from the top of the key, a Caesar steal led to a Peters layup, Harris hit another three after a Yoakum timeout, then picked up another steal and free throw with 26 seconds left in the half to stake the Cowboys to a 35-26 halftime lead.
But the offense sputtered in the fourth quarter, hitting only four shots as Yoakum patiently chipped away at the lead, making 5-of-8 free throws and putting itself in position to take the win in the final seconds.
“They did everything I asked them to do,” Moor said. “We had a little foul up on the last possession and ended up getting in a scramble mode. (Hopkins) got to the rim and got a foul call. Credit to him. He made one of the two.
“We had a couple plans coming out of the timeout. We executed (the full court) beautifully. We had our chance. It just didn’t fall. That’s basketball.”
Moor said after the game that he did not know the extent of Smith’s injury.
Earlier in the week, the Cowboys lost to Rice Consolidated, 74-63.
Caesar exploded for 27 points and Harris added 18, but the Cowboys couldn’t overcome a slow second quarter, when they were outscored 21-10 by the Raiders.
Industrial Boys
Jake Alexander scored 32 points, including seven three-pointers, and Gi’Ziah Lopez posted a double-double as the Cobras powered past Hallettsville, 69-52, Friday night in 25-3A boys’ action.
Alexander buried three three-pointers in the first quarter as Industrial pulled out to a 20-12 lead. Lopez picked it up in the second quarter, going 8-for-8 at the free line as the Cobras expanded their lead to 37-21.
“Jake came out on fire and our defense got us off to a good start,” Industrial Coach Andrey Vanduren said. “Gi’Ziah Lopez came back with a strong, bounce back game with 23 points, 10 rebounds and three blocks.”
Braedyn Vanduren and Ryan Riddle combined to hold Hallettsville’s Jorian Wilson to 22 points and limit his opportunities to impact the game, Vanduren said.
Earlier in the week, the Cobras lost a close game to Yoakum, 61-55.
Alexander led Industrial with 23 points, Vanduren scored nine, and Bryce Warren added six points.
The Cobras hit from long-range, sinking nine three-point shots to Yoakum’s three, but the Bulldogs essentially won the game at the free throw line, making 14 of 33 foul shots as opposed to Industrial’s 6-of-11 free throw attempts.
District 25-3A Scores and Standings
After Friday’s games, three teams stood tied for the lead in the boys 25-3A standings. Rice (19-7), Yoakum (17-8), and Columbus (9-2) all were tied for first at 9-2, with Edna (10-6) in fourth at 7-4, Industrial (1913) in fifth at 5-6, Hallettsville (8-21) in sixth at 3-8, Tidehaven (1-9) in seventh at 1-9, and Palacios (11-21) in eighth at 1-10, according to MaxPreps.
Last Tuesday, Rice Consolidated beat Edna, 74-63; Yoakum beat Industrial, 61-55; Columbus beat Palacios, 76-62; and Hallettsville beat Tidehaven, 44-42. On Friday, Yoakum beat Edna, 56-55; Columbus beat Rice Consolidated, 8567; Industrial beat Hallettsville, 69-52; and Tidehaven beat Palacios, 59-42.
This week, Tuesday’s games included Edna at Industrial; Columbus at Yoakum; Tidehaven at Rice Consolidated; and Hallettsville at Palacios. On Friday, Edna is at Columbus; Industrial is at Palacios; Yoakum is at Tidehaven; and Rice Consolidated is at Hallettsville.
District 28-2A Scores and Standings According to MaxPreps, after Friday’s games, Flatonia (15-12) leads 28-2A at 7-2 in district, followed by Shiner (8-5) and Weimar (16-9) tied for second at 7-3, Schulenburg (11-10) in fourth at 5-3, Ganado (3-5) in fifth at 3-4, Bloomington (2-20) in sixth at 1-7, and Louise (0-20) in seventh at 0-8. Missing scores may be misrepresenting the district standings.
Last Tuesday, Flatonia beat Louise, 64-29 and Weimar beat Shiner, 49-46, while scores from the Bloomington-Ganado and Schulenburg-St. Paul games were not reported. On Friday, Shiner beat Ganado, 47-37; Schulenburg beat Bloomington, 47-36; and Flatonia beat Weimar, 46-41.
This week’s Tuesday games included Louise at Weimar; Flatonia at Ganado; and Shiner at Schulenburg. On Friday, Louise plays at Ganado; Shiner is at Bloomington; and Flatonia is at Schulenburg.
