HIDALGO — The first day of the 8th Annual Hidalgo Pirate Classic tipped off Thursday with 24 teams hitting the hardwood at Hidalgo High School.
The host Pirates got off to a hot start by taking down Donna North 58-14 in Game 1 of pool play, then clashed with Rio Grande City in Game 2 in Hidalgo’s main gym.
The Pirates’ Gus Sanchez and the Rattlers’ Aaron Marroquin dueled as the two each led their teams by converting tough shots at the basket and coming up big when needed most.
After falling behind 16-7 after one quarter, Sanchez began heating up with 11 second-quarter points and a pair of double-clutch layups. His 13 in the first half was one shy of Marroquin’s 14, who did a bit of everything for RGC by crashing the boards, setting teammates up to score and getting his own buckets when the opportunities came.
Sanchez finished with a team-high 22 points for the Pirates, but Marroquin was not to be outdone as his 24 led the Rattlers to a 53-43 win.
Rio Grande City finished 2-0 on the day to win Pool A, setting up a Day 2 matchup against Robstown. The Hidalgo Pirates went 1-1 and will take on Brownsville Rivera in their first game on Day 2.
DONNA BOUNCES BACK
Donna High opened pool play with a tight 45-43 loss to Rio Hondo, but found a way to bounce back in the afternoon as they pulled out a 45-39 victory over Edinburg Economedes to finish 1-1 in their pool.
Donna’s Brandon Chavez finished with a game-high 19 points as the big-man’s play around the rim often resulted in a bucket for his team. But Donna High head coach Manny Epperson said his team’s focus was to slow down Economedes’ Ray De Leon, the Jaguars’ most versatile and explosive player.
“They got after it defensively and that’s where it started. We can shoot the ball, but the first game we came out a little flat, so the objective of this game was to attack the basket a little bit more,” Epperson said. “Ray on the Economedes side is a hell of player, and the guy that guarded him, I didn’t him to score, I just needed him to play defense today and he did a hell of a job.”
Day 2 is set to tip-off at 9 a.m. featuring Platinum Bracket matchups like Hidalgo vs. Brownsville Rivera, Donna High vs. PSJA High, PSJA North against Brownsville Jubilee and Rio Grande City against Robstown.