McAllen High and McAllen Memorial both put together playoff runs a season ago with a combined five postseason victories between the crosstown rivals.

They each lost key pieces due to graduation, and McAllen High saw its entire starting five either walk the stage or transfer to another school. Memorial lost its top three players but returned a few players with valuable experience.

Now, both the Bulldogs and Mustangs find themselves on the verge of another playoff run in 2023 as they prepare for their area-round games.

McAllen Memorial (27-6, 15-3) will take on Laredo Nixon (24-11, 13-1) at 7 p.m. Friday at Roma High School. McAllen High (19-17, 12-6) is set to face Corpus Christi Veterans (24-11, 8-1) at 8 p.m. Friday at Falfurrias High School.

Memorial senior post Rose Martinez is a three-year letterman who knows what it takes to win in the postseason — being locked-in.

“We have to be mentally strong because I know the ticky-tack stuff (fouls) that these guys keep asking for, they’re not going to call in the playoffs because everybody is twice as big and twice as fast. In the playoffs, we’re going to be playing the best of the best,” he said. “They’re in that playoff position for a reason, just like us. We have to keep going, not cry, be mentally tough, physically tough and give it everything we got — win or lose.”

The young Bulldogs squad began the year 2-11 overall but did a lot of growing up during the season under head coach Ryan Flores. McAllen High trailed early in the playoff race for the No. 4 seed, but the Bulldogs made up ground late and earned two head-to-head wins against McAllen Rowe. The Bulldogs and Warriors finished with 12-6 records in district, giving McHi the playoff berth on a tiebreaker.

It then stunned District 32-5A champion Harlingen South 43-41 in overtime Tuesday at McHi. The Bulldogs are as defensively sound as they come, which will be crucial to their success in the area round.

CLASS 6A

It was not the best night for Brownsville area teams. Most were eliminated, and it could have been all if not for District 32-6A’s Brownsville Hanna and Los Fresnos.

Los Fresnos beat Edinburg High 53-52 at home to set up a meeting with San Antonio Taft, the fourth-place team in District 29-5A. Brownsville Hanna’s reward for beating La Joya is San Antonio Brennan, District 29-5A’s champion.

Los Fresnos’ JJ Salazar, Gio Galvan and Luis Ramirez have been key all season for the Falcons. Sophomore Jude Barreda continues to grow, and senior Luis Guerra also has played well throughout the year.

San Benito, the District 32-6A champ, cruised by Edinburg Economedes 57-36 on Tuesday night. The Greyhounds also have their hands full when they face San Antonio Warren.

Edinburg North took care of business against Weslaco High with a 58-39 win at home. The District 31-6A tri-champion Cougars will be making their second area-round appearance in three seasons as they prepare for San Antonio Harlan.

CLASS 5A

District 32-5A would have been swept if not for a late comeback by Weslaco East. The Wildcats continued their impressive season by nearly shutting out Sharyland Pioneer during the fourth quarter. The Wildcats outscored the Diamondbacks 23-3 in the frame.

The Wildcats are set to face Corpus Christi Miller in the second round. The Buccaneers are 10-2 against the Valley. McAllen Memorial and Los Fresnos are the only two teams to beat the District 29-5A champions.

Edinburg Vela is on to the area round in its first year at the Class 5A level after a 54-47 win against Brownsville Pace on Tuesday. The SaberCats are slated to play Corpus Christi Flour Bluff next.

CLASS 4A

The La Feria Lions saved their district from being swept as well when they handled Corpus Christi Tuloso-Midway on Monday. Sinton is next for La Feria, the only team remaining from District 32-4A.

Port Isabel ended the season as the District 32-4A champ by losing a close one to Alice, 66-63. Zapata finished runner-up and lost to Corpus Christi Calallen. Grulla finished its season against Bishop after a fourth-place finish in district.

CLASS 3A

Progreso won its first playoff game since the late 1990s and will look to build on a big, history-making bi-district victory after the Red Ants rolled by Pharr Vanguard 77-53 on Tuesday.

When coach Raul Rivera took over the program four years ago, his goal was to turn things around. Progreso’s done precisely that with a number of seniors leading the way, including Vlady Rivera, the coach’s son. He’s averaging 18.6 points per game, Sergio Moreno is scoring 15.3 per game, and Isaiah Aleman adds 11.9 points.

The Red Ants are set to face Corpus Christi London in Round 2.

Edinburg IDEA Quest won its first district championship in 2023, and now they’ll look to win their first area-round playoff game in program history. The Trailblazers blew past Lyford 65-47 on Tuesday to draw Santa Gertrudis Academy next. Senior guard Jeffrey Nguyen also crossed the 1,000-point mark in the bi-district win.

Santa Rosa and Rio Hondo cruised by their District 31-3A opponents. The Warriors take on San Diego in Round 2, and Rio Hondo is set to face Aransas Pass today.

CLASS 1A and 2A

Santa Maria and San Perlita destroyed their first-round opponents as well. The Cougars take on Goldthwaite, the second-place team out of District 29-2A, in the area round. The Trojans meet District 29-1A champions Fayetteville in Round 2.

The Lower Valley had one team make a state tournament this season. Harlingen Marine Military Academy made it to the TCSAAL final four. Seniors Ken Jones and Frank Ratliff were awarded all-state honors.

Note: The complete boys bi-district playoff schedule can be found at RGVSports.com.

The Texas high school boys basketball playoffs tip off Monday and are headlined by competitive head-to-head matchups between Rio Grande Valley powers, battles with the Coastal Bend and teams looking to make program history.

Starting in District 31-6A, Edinburg High, Edinburg North and La Joya High shared the district title as the teams split their head-to-head matchups against each other in a fight for the top.

After sorting out the tiebreaker seeding scenario, the Cougars (24-15, 8-2) are the No. 1 seed and will take on Weslaco High. The Bobcats (25-10, 8-2) are the No. 2 seed and are headed for a matchup against Los Fresnos, and the third-seeded Coyotes (25-12, 8-2) face Brownsville Hanna in Round 1.

The fourth and final playoff spot in the district came down to Edinburg Economedes and Mission High in a play-in game Friday night.

Economedes’ Sebastiane Lopez dropped 40 points and Nathaniel De La Garza added 18 in an 83-76 win over Mission to send the Jaguars to the playoffs in head coach Romeo De La Garza’s first season at the helm of the program. Economedes will now face San Benito in the opening round of the postseason.

DISTRICT 32-6A

San Benito comes into the dance as the outright District 32-6A champions — its first outright title since the 1960s. They also come in with a solid starting five.

Chris Thrailkill anchors the lineup that features shooters DeAnthony Mireles and Tayshaun Corbin, one of the best athletes in the Valley in Mariano Garcia, and another rising athlete in sophomore Peter Jackson.

Head coach Luis Garza’s guys went 9-1 in district, only losing to Fermin Lucio’s Brownsville Hanna. The Eagles are senior heavy but have some young ballers that complement Ricardo Roman, Kevin Flores and Emiliano Hernandez, to name a few.

San Benito Greyhound Chris Thrailkill (23) hustles in for a layup Friday night against Hanna Golden Eagles at San Benito High School gymnasium. (Miguel Roberts/The Brownsville Herald) Miguel Roberts

The Eagles finished second in the district at 8-2 to set up an interesting meeting with La Joya. Another good matchup is Edinburg High and the third-place team in District 32-6A, Los Fresnos.

Falcons junior JJ Salazar is one of the best players in the district, averaging 19 points a night this season and doing so in a district that features plenty of stingy defense. Gio Galvan and Luis Ramirez each average 11 points per game to assist Salazar in scoring for the Falcons.

Weslaco High looked dead in the water after losing four in a row following a win over Brownsville Rivera to open district. The Panthers picked up big wins over Harlingen High and Los Fresnos to send the Panthers into the playoffs.

Sophomore post Pete Cantu stepped up down the stretch for head coach Gabe Valdez. Cantu hit some big baskets late to seal a win against Harlingen High, the team Weslaco High was chasing.

DISTRICT 30-5A

La Joya Palmview (26-11, 10-4) and Rio Grande City (19-16, 8-6) finished third and fourth in district play and will travel to the Coastal Bend for road matchups against Corpus Christi Veterans and Corpus Christi Miller, respectively.

DISTRICT 31-5A

Edinburg Vela moved down to the Class 5A level and took care of business by winning its second district championship in a row. The SaberCats (24-13, 16-2) are headed for a first-round playoff test against Brownsville Pace (25-11, 13-5).

McAllen Memorial, a team coming off a third-round playoff appearance a season ago, locked up the No. 2 seed and will match up against Brownsville Veterans (21-13, 13-5) in Round 1.

Sharyland Pioneer first-year head coach Fernando Rodriguez led the Diamondbacks to a third-place finish in 31-5A and drew Weslaco East (23-13, 13-5) to open the playoffs.

McAllen High put together back-to-back Sweet 16 and Elite Eight appearances in 2021 and 2022, and was impacted greatly by graduation and players transferring out this season. That didn’t matter as head coach Ryan Flores and the Bulldogs found a way to grind out a playoff spot by clinching the No. 4 seed with crucial head-to-head wins over McAllen Rowe. The Bulldogs will host 32-5A champion Harlingen South in Round 1.

McAllen Memorial’s Nick Nelson (15) and McAllen High’s D’Aundre Canada (4) battle for position under the net as they keep their eyes on the rebound in a District 31-5A game at McAllen High School on Tuesday, Dec. 13, 2022, in McAllen. (Joel Martinez | [email protected]) Joel Martinez

DISTRICT 32-5A

Harlingen South dropped out of District 32-6A and won a District 32-5A championship with ease.

The Hawks rattled off 12 straight district wins to give themselves a huge advantage over the district’s title hopefuls. Good luck guarding junior Steven Ortegon. The Hawks graduated tons of key players but returned a couple of good ones, featuring Ortegon.

Harlingen South’s Steven Ortegon (2) handles the ball against Weslaco East in a District 32-5A game at Weslaco East High School on Friday, Jan. 6, 2023, in Weslaco. (Joel Martinez | [email protected]) Joel Martinez

Longtime head coach Brian Molina has his hands full against a surging McAllen High.

Weslaco East was in second place for most of district play but finished in a three-way tie with Brownsville Veterans Memorial and Brownsville Pace. The Wildcats took care of both in a play-in tournament to ensure a meeting with Sharyland Pioneer.

Weslaco East’s Zion Rodriguez (5) drives to the basket in a District 32-5A game against Harlingen South at Weslaco East High School on Friday, Jan. 6, 2023, in Weslaco. (Joel Martinez | [email protected]) Joel Martinez

Making the playoffs was not going to be easy for Brownsville Pace and Brownsville Veterans. Pace head coach Jose Ramirez made the most of a team that graduated a starting five and then some. Ricky Tijerina and Tyler Rudder stepped up this year. Rudder averaged 15 points per game and Tijerina averaged 12 to send the Vikings back to the playoffs as the fourth seed.

Brownsville Veterans head coach Albert Briones has guided the Chargers to back-to-back playoff appearances. It was not easy for the Chargers, Wildcats and Vikings to make the playoffs with Brownsville Lopez and Mercedes keeping the pressure on, but they did.

DISTRICT 32-4A

Port Isabel head coach Gilbert Rodriguez spent his Friday night watching Alice, his first-round opponent, defeat Kingsville King in a play-in game alongside former head coach Mike Hazelton. The Tarpons went 27-4 and 13-1 to capture the District 32-4A title, but they want more, Rodriguez said.

A deep playoff run is always the goal for the Tarpons. They have three players that can help. Cleveland, Christian and Jeffrey Smith average a combined 48 points per game for the Tarpons, as well as 15 steals and 10 assists between the brothers.

The only team to defeat Port Isabel in district was La Feria. The Lions also have plenty of talented guards under first-year head coach Erik Villagomez. The Lions missed out on the playoffs last year and return this year to face Corpus Christi Tuloso-Midway.

Grulla defeated Raymondville to make the playoffs and will meet Bishop.

DISTRICT 31-3A

Edinburg IDEA Quest captured its first district title in program history and will look to continue its groundbreaking season with a playoff matchup against Lyford. The Trailblazers have gone 22-4 this season and compiled a 15-1 district record. Jeffrey Nguyen’s 20.7 points per game leads IDEA Quest.

Edinburg IDEA Quest’s District 31-3A Championship Team

Pharr Vanguard finished just behind the Quest and was the only district team to defeat it in the process. Christian Tijerina (16.4 points) and Erick Rodriguez (15.4 points) will be key in their bi-district game against Progreso.

DISTRICT 32-3A

The Santa Rosa Warriors cruised through District 32-3A and are set to meet North Mission IDEA on Monday. Rio Hondo took second after beating Progreso in a seeding game, and Lyford made it in as the fourth seed.

Santa Rosa’s Sergio Mendoza (3) tries to grab the rebound but is blocked by Progreso’s Vlady Rivera (3) Friday, Jan. 27, 2023 during the District 32-3A game between Santa Rosa vs. Progreso at Santa Rosa.(Denise Cathey/The Brownsville Herald) Denise Cathey

The Red Ants are back in the postseason led by a senior trio of Vlady Rivera (18.6 points), Sergio Moreno (15.3 points) and Isaiah Aleman (11.9 points).

Progreso’s Vlady Rivera (3) attempts a basket against Monte Alto in a game at Progreso High School on Tuesday, Jan. 24, 2023, in Progreso. (Joel Martinez | [email protected]) Joel Martinez

DISTRICT 32-2A

Santa Maria also breezed by District 32-2A. Cougars guard Chris Ibarra is one to watch for the district champs. La Villa also made the playoffs out of the district and is set for action Tuesday.

DISTRICT 32-1A

San Perlita graduated standout Ely Terry and other key players, but guard Nathan Chavez stepped up and balled out to lead the Valley in scoring with 27 points per game to help the Trojans finish second in District 32-1A.

Lasara also made its way into the postseason for a first-round matchup against D’Hanis.

La Villa will attempt to win its second consecutive District 16-2A DI championship this week as the Cardinals (7-2, 4-0) collide with Freer (6-3, 4-0) at 7:30 p.m. Friday in Freer.

“Our goal is to stay district champs,” La Villa senior center Jaime Elissetche said at RGVSports.com media day.

The two district title contenders are plenty familiar with each other, with a pair of head-to-head matchups in the bi-district round of the playoffs the previous two seasons.

Freer eliminated La Villa from the 2020 playoffs with a 54-12 win. The Cardinals returned the favor and bounced the Buckaroos from the 2021 postseason with a 34-7 victory last season.

Entering this year’s matchup, the Cardinals hold the edge offensively as they lead the district with 158 points scored across four district games compared to the Buckaroos’ 106 points scored in district. Freer’s defense has been the top unit in 16-2A DI with only 34 points surrendered, and La Villa has given up 83.

The Santa Maria Cougars (6-3, 2-2) also in the district, can guarantee third with a win over Premont at 7:30 p.m. Friday in Premont. A loss and the Cougars drop to fourth.

District 16-4A DI

The La Feria Lions booked fourth place in District 16-4A DI when they beat Kingsville King 42-14 in Week 10 to finish their season.

The Lions (6-4, 3-3) could do no better than fourth regardless of what happens during the final week of the season.

District 16-4A DII

Port Isabel (8-2, 2-1), Raymondville (4-5, 2-1), Bishop (5-5, 2-1) and Grulla (1-8, 0-3) all make the playoffs from the four-team district.

Bishop will be the No. 1 seed because of points scored. Raymondville takes the No. 2 seed because they beat Port Isabel, who will be the third team in the district.

All teams are on a bye this week before the playoffs.

District 16-3A DII

The Santa Rosa Warriors (6-3, 3-2) have a chance to clinch a playoff spot with a win over the Banquete Bulldogs (5-4, 2-3) at 7:30 p.m. Friday at Warrior Stadium in Santa Rosa.

The Warriors control their own destiny Friday night: win and they are in. If they lose, the Warriors will need the best team in the district, the Taft Greyhounds (7-2, 5-0), to beat the George West Longhorns (4-4, 3-2) on Friday in Taft.

Santa Rosa holds the tiebreaker over George West when the Warriors beat the Longhorns 14-12 in Week 5.

TAPPS DII District 3

Brownsville St. Joseph clinched the No. 2 seed in the district in Week 10 by beating San Antonio St. Anthony 46-14.

A loss against TMI-Episcopal means little for the Bloodhounds (7-2, 5-1). They hold both tiebreakers over Austin Hyde Park (7-2, 4-4) and Austin St. Michaels (4-4, 4-2).