By CLAIRE CRUZ, Staff Writer
RIO GRANDE CITY — For three and a half quarters, the Los Fresnos Falcons trailed the Laredo Alexander Bulldogs in their area-round matchup.
With 5:35 remaining in the game, Los Fresnos freshman Gerry Martinez turned a turnover into a 3-pointer to tie the contest at 41. Then, with 3:43 left, he hit another one to give the Falcons their first lead of the night. He later opened the advantage, hitting two free throws to put Los Fresnos up by five.
The Falcons used lockdown defense and Martinez’s smooth shooting to come from behind and defeat the Bulldogs 48-45, clinching the area-round win to advance to the third round of the Class 6A state playoffs.
“I’m excited, we wanted it so bad, and I’m just happy,” Los Fresnos coach Marco Hinojosa said. “(Martinez) is our offensive MVP. That kid can go off for 30 any given night. He has ice in his veins, silent assassin … I’m glad he’s on our team.”
Laredo Alexander jumped on top quickly by outrebounding Los Fresnos during the first half and playing better interior offense. The Bulldogs fed Jacob Rodriguez inside, and his 13 first-half points helped his team take a 24-22 lead into the locker room.
Hinojosa’s halftime message was simple: play Falcons basketball. Los Fresnos prides itself on defense, and it turned up the intensity during the second half. The Falcons did a better job of pressuring the ball in the third quarter, but Laredo Alexander’s shooters stepped up and hit shots to maintain the lead.
During the fourth quarter, with their season hanging in the balance, the Falcons found another gear. They shut down the paint and swarmed to the ball as the Bulldogs passed it to force turnovers and travel calls. The bench and the Los Fresnos fans loudly chanted “defense” as the Falcons got into their half-court setup and made stop after stop.
Martinez’s eight straight points energized his squad, and he was swallowed up by his teammates when the buzzer rang. He led Los Fresnos with 22 points, scoring 11 of the team’s 15 fourth-quarter points to earn the Falcons the win.
Senior Ricky Altamirano added 13 for the Falcons.
“I feel amazing right now. I’ve never had this kind of feeling before,” Martinez said. “My teammates trusted me, and that was a big part of my game. They told me to start going to work, so I did what they told me to.”
Rodriguez paced the Bulldogs with 17, Javier Macias scored 12 and Bobby Torres added 11. Laredo Alexander has ended Los Fresnos’ season before, and Friday night the Falcons got to return the favor.
“That freshman kid, he’s good. He was shooting almost from halfcourt, I mean, how can you defend that?” Laredo Alexander coach Luis Valdez said. “It’s always tough to end the season. … Our kids played well, but they’re the No. 1 team in the (Rio Grande Valley) and they deserve all the credit.”