By ROY HESS, Staff Writer
Brownsville First Baptist boasts a boys basketball team ranked No. 7 in the state in TAPPS Class 3A.
The Crusaders’ poll position may improve when the new weekly TAPPS rankings are announced Tuesday.
First Baptist, 16-8, has gone about winning a district championship and achieving a high level of success without much in the way of fanfare outside the school’s confines.
That’s perfectly fine with Crusaders coach George E. Solis, now in his third season guiding the team and 10th overall at the school.
“We consider our season very successful, and we like it quiet,” Solis said.
The Crusaders have clinched their district championship with a 5-0 record and one conference game remaining. It’s Thursday at South Texas Christian of McAllen.
First Baptist will have a first-round bye in the TAPPS playoffs and then go against a team from the Austin or San Antonio area in the second round on Feb. 21. It will be a home game for the Crusaders.
“We just go about doing our business,” said Solis, whose ballclub earlier this season won the Progreso Tournament and captured the consolation championship at the San Isidro Tournament. “We’re a very humble team, but when we step on the court, we’re a very courageous team that is not afraid of any challenge.”
There is only one senior on the squad. He is Jorge Barrios, a 5-foot-10 forward and team co-captain along with 5-6 junior point guard George Andrew Solis, son of the head coach.
other starters include 6-3 junior center Phillip Crumley, 6-0 junior forward Juan Alberto Pena and 6-1 junior forward Brandon Diaz.
Phillip Crumley leads the team in scoring (13.0), rebounding (12.0) and blocks (3.0). Barrios leads the team in assists with an average of six per game. In a recent game, Barrios recorded a rare triple double that did not include points. He had double-digit totals in rebounding, assists and steals.
Other members of the ballclub are Robert Gualt, Pablo Perez, Mauricio De La Garza, Alexis Segovia, Marco De Leon and Stephen Crumley.
George Lovejoy and Joshua Crumley are the assistant coaches.
Barrios has been a varsity player for the Crusaders all four years of high school and said it’s one of the best basketball teams the school has produced.
“I feel honored to be a captain for the players on this team and watch them grow as persons,” he said. “We have become more united as a team throughout the years. We’re playing for fun and we’re doing good (at the same time).
“We know that what is ahead (in the playoffs) will be challenging and we know we can overcome it,” he added.
George Andrew Solis likes the way the squad plays with an attitude of unity.
“We’re giving an overall (strong) team effort,” he said. “It’s a lot of fun to play with these guys and hang out with them. We work really well together as a team, we’re fast and we’re playing good defense along with good passing and (an active) fastbreak.
“Our goal was to make the playoffs,” he added. “We’ve done that and now we just want to keep on going, hopefully make it to the (TAPPS) state tournament and go undefeated.”