By STEFAN MODRICH | KEVIN NARRO Staff Writers
Following a 68-49 loss against PSJA North on Tuesday, Pace coach Jose Luis Ramirez addressed a conundrum that his team occasionally deals with when it encounters a big like the Raiders’ Iziaah Rangel.
“Can I afford to bring in a big that can matchup with him,” Ramirez said. “And not be able to run? Or do I bring a mid-size kid that can run and defend that kind of (post player). That’s kind of where we’re at right now. I do have a couple of big kids that just can’t run when we try to run the floor – not yet, anyway.”
Pace’s coach did insert 6-foot-4 sophomore Chase Morales to try to counter PSJA North’s size advantage.
“We just couldn’t get into the right flow,” Ramirez said.
Ramirez said senior Esequiel Hernandez has a good track record as being Pace’s go-to stopper when the Vikings are tasked with slowing down an imposing, physical frontcourt player like Rangel.
Despite his recent struggles, Hernandez will likely remain an important cog of the Pace rotation going forward. But Ramirez was clear about the need for a change in the short-term.
“He’s really a 4, he’s a small forward,” Ramirez said. “I gave him the assignment (of Rangel) because he is tough – he’ll take a charge, he likes to box out – his specialty is on the defensive side. He’s done a good job. (Against PSJA North) though he kind of didn’t. He wasn’t aggressive enough.
“I hadn’t seen that from him in a while, so we definitely need to look at our lineup and see what we can do as far as making the right change to put the right person inside to get us that stop, especially when the other team has a big kid inside.”
EAST VALLEY BOYS
Los Fresnos freshman Gerry Martinez led the Falcons with 20 points in an 89-34 win over Mission Veterans on Tuesday. Martinez went 3-for-6 from three-point range and 7 for 13 from the field. He also had two steals. Elian Gonzalez had 18 points and Alex Moreno, Luis Gonzalez, and Rick Altamirano each posted 11 points for Los Fresnos.
The Falcons are set to host Weslaco High at 1:30 p.m. Friday.
Also on Tuesday, Harlingen High topped Edinburg Vela 57-54 in overtime and Brownsville Veterans Memorial edged Rio Hondo 41-40. The Cardinals will host Pace at 7 p.m. on Dec. 3. The Chargers are slated to host Rivera at 2:30 p.m. Friday, while the Bobcats will visit Santa Maria at 8 p.m. on Dec. 3.
The Raymondville boys defeated rival Lyford 56-42 at home on Tuesday. Ethan Moreno had 12 points and Jayson Cantu had 11 for the Bearkats. Adrian Sierra finished with nine points and Jose Garcia had eight for the Bulldogs.
Santa Maria lost 71-62 at Edcouch Elsa on Monday. The Cougars will travel to Valley View to play the Tigers at 4 p.m. Saturday.
On Friday, Santa Rosa and San Perlita will travel to San Antonio’s AT&T Center, the home of the San Antonio Spurs, where they will play at 1:45 p.m. Following the contest, the teams and their traveling fans will watch the Spurs take on the Los Angeles Clippers at 7:30 p.m.
EAST VALLEY GIRLS
Jubilee Brownsville beat Brownsville IDEA Frontier 48-44 to tip off the District 32-3A slate on Monday, while the Porter Cowgirls defeated San Perlita 60-50 on Monday and Hanna picked up a 36-27 victory over Raymondville on Tuesday.
Also on Tuesday, Weslaco High topped Harlingen South 51-46, while Rio Hondo defeated St. Joseph Academy 58-46.
After Thanksgiving, Harlingen High and Los Fresnos will each have a high profile non-district game, as the Lady Cardinals visit Laredo Nixon at 3:30 p.m. Saturday and the Lady Falcons host McAllen Memorial at 12:30 p.m. Saturday.
Harlingen South is off to a strong start behind a balanced attack on offense to go along with Bianca Gonzalez and Julia Celis as the teams tone-setters on defense.
The defensive side of the ball has been key side of the ball has been key for the Lady Hawks, who have been challenged early.
“The girls have been working hard defensively,” said South coach Kelly Garrett. “It has helped us tremendously. We have played some tough teams so far, especially at the Northside tournament in San Antonio.”
On Tuesday, South fell to Weslaco High 51-46. In the loss, Isabella Marez scored a team-high 12 points. Celis finished with eight and Amber Lopez netted seven points.
The Lady Hawks will meet Mercedes on the road Dec.3
Rio Hondo continues to play well through the early portion of the season, posting a 7-2 record, with its most recent win coming in a 58-46 win over Brownsville St. Joseph. Estrella Garza scored a game-high 16 points. Jazaline Ayala and Eliza Rodriguez each scored nine points in the win.
Up next is the Tommy Wiseman tournament next Thursday in La Feria.
On Monday Lyford kicked off district play with an 84-24 win over IDEA Pike. The Lady Bulldogs improve to 6-3 on the year and are 1-0 in league play. Kayleen May led the way with 19-points, Samamtha Delgado followed with 13 points and Alyssa Garcia netted 11 ponts. Lyford will now meet IDEA Riverview on Tuesday.
Jubilee Brownsville beat Brownsville IDEA Frontier 48-44 to tip off the District 32-3A slate on Monday, while the Porter Cowgirls defeated San Perlita 60-50 on Monday and Hanna picked up a 36-27 victory over Raymondville on Tuesday.