BY SAUL BERRIOS-THOMAS | STAFF WRITER
ALAMO — Sharyland High senior center Andres Rubio was not in the starting lineup against a small and quick PSJA Memorial team Friday night.
“This might have been the first time all season he didn’t start,” Sharyland coach Danny Moran said. “I think that fueled him a little bit to come off the bench, and he wanted the ball when he came in the game. That is what we wanted from him.”
“It always lights a fire in me,” Rubio said of not starting. “I’m not down, because I have a lot of confidence in my teammates, but when I came off the bench, I was like ‘I will do whatever I can to help the team win.’”
Rubio was, however, on the court with the Rattlers down one and less than 10 seconds left.
After a timeout, junior guard Naz Moore made the pass to start the play, and then came in for a screen from Rubio. Rubio also screened for senior guard Mauro Fernandez, so all eyes were on the Rattlers’ two star guards.
But, Rubio kept the ball, and the lane parted like the red sea, as the big man rumbled toward the rim.
“I knew (the first shot was a miss) because the guy was coming in from the other side,” Rubio said. “I was like ‘he is coming full-fledged to try to block this. So I have to do something to avoid it.’ I ended up missing.”
The clock was down to less than three seconds after the miss. Fernandez was on the low block, so he boxed out his man, allowing Rubio to grab his own miss and put it back up. Rubio said he knew the basket was good once he put it up. And as it went through the cylinder, the buzzer sounded.
“It felt amazing,” Rubio said. “I am just proud to be a part of Sharyland.”
Sharyland High beat PSJA Memorial 44-43 in District 31-5A action, snapping the Rattlers’ six-game losing streak and giving them their first district win.
“I just jumped up on (Rubio),” Moore said. “We have been losing, so we just wanted to come out and shake that off, and just get it done.”
The Wolverines took the lead early, and Rattlers’ fans were worried about another slow start, which has haunted them all year. Sharyland’s well-timed timeout allowed the team to regroup early.
“In the timeout, we were like we need to refocus,” Moore said. “We didn’t want it to go the same way again. I just told the guys, we need this.”
The lead see-sawed back and forth as both teams played scrappy and fast, if a bit sloppy.
PSJA Memorial came into the game with a lot of emotion after losing a classmate yesterday. Fans wore shirts to remember the teen who was fatally shot on Thursday.
The Rattlers’ emotion stemmed from their frustration at their play on the court over the past few games, and the emotion from both sides spilled onto the court. Hard fouls and heavy steal attempts led to a slower second half, with plenty of trips to the line.
The emotion affected the crowd as well, as both sides lived and died with each call, shot and dribble.
Memorial led for the majority of the first half, but a late surge led by Sharyland senior Isai Heredia allowed the Rattlers to take a six-point lead into the break.
Memorial was able to tie the ballgame in the fourth, and even take a lead for short astretches.
Rubio’s heroics were the highlight of his night, but the sharp-shooting center was effective throughout the game, creating mismatches with the smaller Wolverines.
“The way he can shoot, play defense and score in the low post, he is unguardable,” Fernandez said. “There may be five centers in the Valley that can guard him, and only one in our district.”
Memorial countered by going even smaller and forcing Rubio to run and close out on the perimeter. Rubio was off the court for much of the fourth, but he was brought back in for the final play.
After Rubio hit the winner, his teammates rushed the court and mobbed him.
Moore scored 11 for the Rattlers. Shooters Johnny Escamilla and Fernandez both had off nights as Escamilla scored three, and Fernandez scored two, but both were still pivotal to the win with what they bring beyond scoring. And the MVP of the night, Rubio, finished with a team-high 15.
Michael Munoz led the way for the Wolverines with 12, and John Martinez added eight.
One win doesn’t erase all the problems the Rattlers have had this year, but they are hoping the confidence and excitement from Friday’s win will carry over into the next few weeks, and even the second half of the district season.
“Defensively we have to get better,” Moran said. “We know we can score. We just have to execute offensively, and then rebounding is big. We haven’t won the rebounding margin all year, and I feel like today, we did.”
Moore echoed those sentiments
“We just have to keep winning, every game is a playoff game from here on out,” Moore said. “We are going to be a problem in the second half of district.”