BY KEVIN NARRO | SPECIAL TO THE MONITOR
EDINBURG —In Carlos Ramos’ five years as head coach at Edinburg Economedes, his Jaguars had never won at Edinburg North. Last season, the Jaguars won just one district game.
“We all took a big slice of humble pie last season,” Ramos said. “I wanted our boys to have last year as motivation. They fed off of last season and carried it over to this year. This game was big for us. Our boys have been looking forward to this game for the longest time. We played them tough last year, and it was all a part of the growing process. Seeing them win tonight was a great thing, knowing all their work paid off.”
Economedes used a strong third quarter to pull away from Edinburg North 45-35 Tuesday night. The win moves Econ to 15-3 overall and 2-0 in district.
Economedes managed to hold a lead throughout the first half. Gonzalez led Econ with 8 first-half points, while the Jags started the game with a 12-4 run. Economedes built a 19-15 lead at the break.
Edinburg North trailed by as many as 14 and could not get the ball to roll its way. On multiple occasions, Edinburg North struggled underneath the rim. Econ, on the other hand, hit three of its first five attempts from 3-point range, thus giving the Jags a double-digit lead in the second half.
“In the first half, we played to Edinburg North’s style,” Ramos said. “We know they like a half-court offense, and they know we like to run and play in transition. I think (that was) what was impressive about this win. We were able to adjust to a different style. In the third quarter, we got back to our style of ball, and that’s to run and play in transition.”
The fourth quarter wasn’t as clean as the third for Econ. The Cougars managed to cut the lead to 8 with 3:40 remaining.
However, that’s as close as the Cougars would get, with Econ closing the door on any type of comeback. Seeing the progress and transition from last season brings optimism for Ramos’ team.
“Last year we won one district game, and won seven games overall,” Ramos said. “This year, it’s about all of us. As a team, we don’t like to make it about one guy, we like to spread the ball around. I tell the kids, it doesn’t matter what we’ve done, it’s a matter of taking on the next challenge and getting better these next 12 games.”
Gonzalez wound up with 11 points, with teammate Joshua Sauceda leading Econ with 14 points.
The Jags will now shift their focus to PSJA Southwest, while the Cougars (6-14,0-2) are still aiming for their first district win of the season. Edinburg North has a date with Edinburg High on Friday night.