By STEFAN MODRICH
Staff Writer
The Mercedes boys basketball team walked into the Brownsville Pace gym with a discernible swagger, intent on silencing the large crowd of Vikings supporters.
The Tigers escaped with a victory in a nail-biter of a District 32-5A contest, winning 63-62 on a 3-pointer by Jordan Ovalles with 11 seconds remaining.
In a game that featured a clash of two fast, sharp-shooting teams and several lead changes and ties, it came down to one final defensive stop. The Vikings trailed by three on their final possession and made a layup at the buzzer after their game-tying three-point attempt fell short.
“They got us pretty good at our place last time,” Mercedes coach Rick Trevino said. “We just came in relaxed, knowing that it was going to be up-tempo and that they could really play.”
In a tense game, perhaps the energy and loose attitude of Mercedes made a difference. One such example came when Alex Rincon mimicked James Harden’s signature celebration, stirring an imaginary soup spoon and putting a finger to his lips as he turned to the fans in the home bleachers after his steal and coast-to-coast layup put the Tigers up 49-44, their largest lead of the evening.
While the crowd did not oblige, Mercedes remained intent on getting under the skin of the Pace ballhandlers with hands in passing lanes and constant ball pressure.
“We knew this was going to be another high-flyer,” Trevino said. “We know they can get up and down. We wanted to spread them out and see if we could get numbers on the other end, which we did at times. Sometimes we were out of control, and sometimes we got good looks.”
Pace led 17-15 after the first quarter thanks to the playmaking of guard Christian Guajardo, who led the Vikings with 19 points.
The Vikings held the ball for the last shot of the half, trailing by three. Guajardo bided his time and then swung the ball from the top of the key around to a wide open Alex Agado in the corner. Agado buried the 3 (Pace’s fourth of the half) to send the Vikings into the locker room on a high note with the game even at 32 apiece.
With less than six minutes to play in the fourth, Guajardo banked in deep 3 to trim Mercedes’ lead to one with less than six minutes to play in the game. Pace clawed its way back into striking distance by getting back-to-back stops, and Guajardo found Agado for another clutch 3 from the opposite corner to give the Vikings their first lead of the half, 53-51 with four minutes to play.
And just when it seemed that a bucket by Baltazar Hinojosa gave Pace a five-point cushion and enough to cruise to a win, a steal and a 3 by Mercedes’ Brandon Lozoya kept the Tigers’ hopes alive. The teams traded baskets, setting up a tying 3 by Jesse Fuentes to even the game at 60 with 1:22 to play.
“(Fuentes) was turning down some shots early,” Trevino said. “We pulled him out when we had a defensive possession, and I told him, ‘You’re going back on offense, and I need you to shoot it every time you’re open.’ He’s our best shooter, and he showed why there at the end.”
Ovalles delivered the dagger 3 from the corner, and Mercedes moved to 8-2 in 32-5A and is in sole possession of second place behind Brownsville Veterans.
The Pace Lady Vikings defeated the Mercedes Lady Tigers 45-41.
Sophia Espinoza (14 points) and Lexy Arce (12 points) led the Lady Vikings.
Jazmine Flores (14 points) Malory Noriega (11 points) were the leading scorers for the Lady Tigers.