By STEFAN MODRICH | Staff Writer
Matt Maddox scored 13 points and Damian Maldonado added 11 for Brownsville Veterans Memorial as the Chargers defeated Mercedes 53-39 in front of their home crowd for the first time in 2020 to tip off District 32-5A play on Friday afternoon.
Brownsville Veterans jumped out to a 15-3 lead at the end of the first quarter, as Maldonado chipped in four points and Gerardo Castaneda had three. The staunch defensive effort in the first two periods proved to be pivotal, as the Tigers would go on to match the Chargers with 16 points in the third quarter and nine in the fourth.
Chargers coach Larry Gibson was pleased with his team’s defensive performance, as Brownsville Veterans frequently pressed Mercedes and persistently clogged passing lanes, but added he felt the offensive output from his team left much to be desired.
“It was probably the worst offensive game we’ve had all year,” Gibson said. “We didn’t move the ball, I thought we played selfish. When we missed shots we got our heads down, and I was disappointed.”
Gibson said he thought his team didn’t move the ball particularly well or shoot the ball accurately against Mercedes, but saw flashes of the passing the Chargers have come to expect from Maldonado on the perimeter.
After taking a 28-14 lead into the half, the Chargers took their largest lead of the game with 4:23 to go in the third quarter when Maldonado assisted Maddox on a 3-pointer to put the Chargers up by 14 and Maddox laid the ball up off the glass for a transition layup to put the home team up 37-21.
“We attacked too much uphill instead of downhill,” Gibson said, noting that neither team entered the bonus at the line. “The way they defend, they sag off you quite a bit and they give you the lane. We were shooting three-pointers and not attacking the lane.”
Brownsville Veterans shot 6-for-7 from the free throw line and Mercedes was 4-for-11 from the charity stripe.
Justin Closner (15 points) and Jordan Ovalle (eight points) led the way for Mercedes.
Next up on the Chargers’ 32-5A schedule is a visit to Valley View at 6 p.m. Tuesday. Also on Tuesday, the Tigers will travel to Edcouch-Elsa for a 6 p.m. district battle.
Garza, Lady Chargers roll past Lady Tigers
Lizzy Garza scored 14 points, eight of which came during the second quarter for Brownsville Veterans Memorial, as the Lady Chargers pulled away from the Mercedes Lady Tigers for a 50-27 District 32-5A victory on Friday.
“The defensive pressure once again helped us get those transition points,” Lady Chargers coach Arnold Torres said. “Lizzy is one of our quicker players, so it gives her an opportunity to score some easy buckets in transition.”
Garza displayed some of that speed and coordination when she went on a 6-0 scoring run at the end of the first half, starting with a long two-pointer extended Brownsville Veterans’ lead to 19-13. She followed that with another bucket to make it 21-13 with just under a minute to go, and she tacked on two more points from almost the exact same spot on the floor with two seconds left to give the Lady Chargers a 23-13 advantage as they headed into the locker room at the break.
The Lady Chargers made six three-point field goals and half of them came from Alexa Torres, who finished with 11 points.
Bry Buitureira knocked down a pair of treys and Juju Alvarez added a triple for Brownsville Veterans in the second half.
Torres said his team’s versatility and depth has allowed different scorers to have their moment to shine in the Brownsville Veterans system.
“One of our advantages is that every game, somebody else has stepped up,” Torres said. “Alexa came in and hit some big shots for us and those helped us get some momentum in transition on the defensive side and helped give us a little motivation.”
The Lady Chargers led 41-20 at the end of the third quarter.
Mercedes’ top scorers were Mika Vento (10 points) and Karisa Moya (seven points).
Next up for the Lady Chargers is a trip to Valley View for a District 32-5A clash at 7:30 p.m. Tuesday. The Lady Tigers are slated to continue district play when they host Edcouch-Elsa at 7:30 p.m. Tuesday.