MISSION — There were clear skies across the Rio Grande Valley on Friday, but inside the Sharyland Pioneer gymnasium at the 2022 Sharyland ISD “Snakeskin” Basketball Tournament, Mercedes senior guard David Clower was making it rain.
He led the Tigers to a 1-1 day by scoring a combined 67 points across two games.
First, Clower and teammate Joaquin Gonzales scored 28 and 27 points, respectively, in a 76-66 overtime win against Harlingen High.
Clower followed that up with a 39-point performance against Brownsville Hanna in a 69-66 defeat.
Mercedes closes out the tournament with games against La Joya High at 9 a.m. and Weslaco High at noon at Sharyland Pioneer High School.
Brownsville Lopez’s Marco Coello has helped the Lobos to a 3-0 start at the “Snakeskin” Basketball Tournament. Friday’s victories for Brownsville Lopez included a 55-30 win over crosstown rival Brownsville Hanna and a 59-45 win against Mission High.
The Lobos are scheduled to face Weslaco High at 9 a.m. and Harlingen High at 3 p.m. on Day 3 of the tournament at Sharyland Pioneer High School.
Both Sharyland High and Sharyland Pioneer have gone 2-1 through two days of their home tourney. The Rattlers bounced back from a loss against Weslaco High with a 58-33 win over Mission High and a 52-49 win against Harlingen. The Diamondbacks split their Day 2 games with a 48-40 victory against Weslaco High and a 52-22 loss versus La Joya High.
Day 1 of the Sharyland ISD “Snakeskin” Basketball Tournament on Thursday featured a 5A-6A challenge between Rio Grande Valley programs from the two biggest UIL classifications.
The 5A teams came out with a 3-2 edge in head-to-head matchups against their 6A competition as Sharyland Pioneer defeated Brownsville Hanna 59-51, Brownsville Lopez beat La Joya High 59-52 and Mercedes topped Mission High 58-50. Harlingen High and Weslaco High secured wins for the 6A squads, 50-42 over Rio Grande City and 48-43 against Sharyland High, respectively.
CITY OF PALMS TOURNAMENT
The final four stage is set for the City of Palms Tournament hosted by McAllen Rowe and McAllen High.
The semifinals of the championship bracket, which are scheduled for noon tipoffs today, feature McAllen High versus Laredo LBJ at McAllen High School and Los Fresnos against Brownsville Pace at McAllen Rowe High School.
The winners move on to the championship game at 6 p.m. at McAllen Rowe High School. The third-place game will be played at 4:30 p.m., also at Rowe.
The Vikings made their way to the tournament semifinals by taking down District 32-5A rival Brownsville Veterans 45-29 on Friday. The Falcons fought their way past Laredo Alexander 62-53 to set up the final four game against Pace.
It’ll be a rematch of their non-district thriller on Nov. 29 that saw the Vikings defeat the Falcons 63-61 on a halfcourt buzzer-beater by Ricky Tijerina.
McAllen High held off Harlingen South 47-41 to advance to the semifinals against Laredo LBJ.