BY SAUL BERRIOS-THOMAS | THE MONITOR
EDINBURG — The trophy was always going to stay in Edinburg.
Coming into Saturday, all four ECISD schools were the in the semifinals of the Craig Smith Tournament, guaranteeing a winner within the district.
“ We kind of thought that was going to be the scenario,” Edinburg High coach Esequiel Cuellar said. “Looking at the bracket early on, we kind of thought that the bracket was going to play out the way it did.”
Economedes beat Vela 50-43 and Edinburg High beat Edinburg North 64-43 to lock in the championship matchup.
In the final game on Saturday at Economedes High School, Edinburg High beat Economedes 50-43 to seal the tournament championship.
“ It felt awesome to win the tournament,” Edinburg High sophomore Jorge Hernandez said. “It was a good experience overall.”
All-tournament MVP junior Antoine Woodard was a large reason why his team came out on top.
“ It was a pretty good tournament,” Woodard, who had a game-high 17 points in the final, said. “We had good completion, playing against Hanna and Sharyland Pioneer. Those are two teams that are tough. That prepared us for this game against Econ, and we came out and took the ‘W.’”
Woodard and all-tournament team member Jesus Cantu, a senior center, got the Bobcats rolling right away, scoring nine of Edinburg High’s first 12 points.
The Bobcats led by about 10 from Woodard and Cantu’s start through to the end of the third quarter, but Economedes made it a game late.
With just over four minutes to play, Econ cut the lead to six.
“ Economedes is tough,” Cuellar said. “They have a bunch of shooters. I think we did a good job of contesting their shots early on. We made it a little difficult for them to execute what they wanted. … That Salinas kid got a little hot in the fourth, but he is that type of player. He is a competitor, and he makes everyone on his team better.”
All-tournament team member Angel Salinas finished the game with 13 points, tying also hot-shooting all-tournament team member Jonathan Barrientos for the team-high point total.
Rebounding helped the Bobcats maintain their lead. Cantu had a game-high 12 rebounds, while Woodard added eight.
Still, Cuellar knows that when district play rolls around, the Bobcats will have to play cleaner games.
“ Sometimes, these kids make mistakes and get a little hardheaded,” Cuellar said. “The decision-making has got to get better. At different times in the game, we didn’t make good decisions. We kind of kicked ourselves in the butt. Our kids still have to understand how to handle the clock better and understand foul situations on the floor. I don’t think we did a good job of that today. … Our kids are thinking that they can shoot the ball whenever they want to. With a 10-point lead, they are settling for outside shots.”
Hernandez didn’t have a point in the game, but the sophomore who scarcely played is trying to make his mark whenever his name gets called.
“ I am focusing on defense,” Hernandez, who was the only Bobcat to come off the bench in the final, said. “Like coach said, I’m just being a role player. I noticed that my defense is coming along more than my offense. I have to keep it under control. I play as a role player, and I do my job.”
Having played two games each day for the last three days, the Bobcats are certainly feeling a little worn out.
“ The coaches do a really good job of working with us on conditioning,” Woodard said. “We do a lot of running up and down the court, taking free-throw shots when we are fatigued, all the stuff that prepares us for this time.”
For now, though, it’s all about rest, recovery and the celebration meal:
“ Ice cream,” Woodard said with a grin.