By MARIO AGUIRRE | STAFF WRITER
EDINBURG — After struggling the past two seasons with a virtually young squad, Weslaco High seemed due for a breakout year.
From the start of the season, coach Gabe Valdez spoke of his team’s improved maturity, their attention to defense, and the lessons they learned from a three-win district mark followed by the disappointment that stemmed from finishing one place shy of a playoff berth in 2014.
So when the opportunity presented itself Tuesday to win the District 31-6A title outright, the Panthers seized it, cruising by Edinburg High 56-40 in the regular-season finale.
“These kids worked hard all year and this is the result of it,” Valdez said. “We’ve taken our lumps the past couple of years, but the kids grew up. That experience that we had last year (narrowly missing the playoffs) just catapulted us.”
Weslaco (22-11, 10-2) climbed the district mountain for the first time since 2012, before most of this year’s group had arrived. Had they lost Tuesday, there would have been a two-way tie for first place in district.
Winning, however, helped the Panthers avoid that. They swept the season series against Edinburg High (19-12, 8-4) and will now face Brownsville Veterans in the opening round of the playoffs.
“We’re happy we won district,” Weslaco’s Jason Morales said, “but we’re more looking forward to the playoffs. Last year, we didn’t make it. But this year our team came together.”
The result of the game shook up the top-half of the District 30-6A standings, creating a three-way tie for second place between Edinburg High, PSJA North and Edinburg North, after PSJA North beat Edinburg North 58-47.
A coin flip late Tuesday night resolved the seeding with Edinburg North finishing in second, Edinburg High third and PSJA North fourth.
With only nine players on his roster, Edinburg High coach Esequiel Cuellar said he didn’t mind flipping for seeding rather than playing, using the next few days to rest his players from what has been an exhausting season.
By halftime Tuesday, his players seemed spent. Weslaco High held a 26-21 advantage, but momentum had completely shifted in the Panthers’ favor. They had outscored Edinburg in every quarter, taking their first double-digit lead of the game at 41-30 after consecutive baskets by Justice Free (12 points), who outhustled practically everyone on the court and muscled his way underneath the hoop.
“We just came out strong,” Free said.
Edinburg never got into a rhythm offensively, hurrying shots, missing layups and failing to take advantage of some opportunities. And it cost the Bobcats, who will face Harlingen South in bi-district.
“We did a decent job up until halftime,” Cuellar said, “but we committed some dumb mistakes, some pressure mistakes and we turned the ball over. We tried rushing our offense and we took some bad shots and didn’t get second-chance opportunities.
“We just didn’t’ do a good job of helping each other out, and (Weslaco) did a good job of executing and looking for good shots and not settling. We settled. That’s what got us in trouble.”