BY JON R. LaFOLLETTE | STAFF WRITER
MISSION — Weslaco East coach Jorge Martinez was determined to prevent a repeat of last week. When the Wildcats faced Mission Veterans Memorial during a tournament at Edcouch-Elsa, inconsistent play cost the Wildcats a shot at gold.
So when the two teams faced each other in a rematch during Saturday’s Thanksgiving Classic championship at Mission Veterans Memorial High School, Martinez and his team knew what to do.
“We had a goal,” Martinez said. “We felt like we let last week slip away from us. We were determined to come out here and get this one. Our kids set the tone from the beginning, and we took it from there.”
And the Wildcats took it all the way to a first-place finish, soundly beating Mission Veterans 46-26. East’s victory was spurred in part by terrific outside shooting. The Wildcats (9-3) made seven shots from behind the arc while the Patriots failed to sink any from long range.
“He’s knocked down a ton of big shots to put games away during this tournament,” Martinez said. “He’s up from the JV from last year, and he’s really doing a great job of keeping the floor spaced.”
Both teams traded baskets during the early going with East leading Mission Veterans 12-10 after the first quarter. While East saw four of its five starters contribute points, Lazaro Garza led the way for the Patriots with six points.
The second quarter saw the beginning of the Wildcats’ sharp-shooting attack. Garza scored all eight of East’s second-quarter points behind a pair of 3-pointers before notching another two during the third quarter. Guard Jonathan Munoz added two more long-range shots during the third quarter as well.
“We just kept setting screens and moving the ball,” Garza said. “We kept getting open looks, so we kept taking them… Everyone on this team can shoot.”
During the final three quarters, the Wildcats outscored the Patriots 34-16. While East familiarized itself with open looks, the Patriots were downed by turnovers and poor shooting.
“We were just aggressive,” Martinez said. “We didn’t allow them to get any middle penetration, which hurt us the last game. We made sure it was one-and-done. We did a good job of boxing out and holding them to one shot on every possession. That was the key.”
The Wildcats look ahead to looming district play and a chance to make the playoffs after failing to do so a season ago.
“We’ve got to get better at consistency,” Martinez said. “We have to make sure that our defense is a staple of our team. When we play good defensively, we’ll always give ourselves a chance to win.”