JimThorpe

I wouldn’t trade the last four years for anything. But I have to say it’s more fun when you don’t know how it’s going to turn out. These two are so close that it feels like we just saw game one of a best of three mini-series. It’s important to win that series because the winner doesn’t face Yates till the region tourney.

You get the feeling that Bush could take it to the hoop almost every time down the court and that he doesn't do it only because it would be bad form. Kind of like Pete Maravich at LSU. The best chance to score on every single trip down the court was to have Pete take the shot. I think the Hawks can be pretty satisfied that they way they held him to only 31. Blocked a couple of his shots and made him miss a few times. Even stole the ball from him once. Good job men. Usually it takes a big 5A or 6A team to do that.

You gotta love that kid. My personal interest is that he reminds me of my grandson. He's going to end up about the same height and build, maybe a little taller. He's quick and agile but he's not going to be any kind of specimen. I'd like him to see Wirth play in a big game. Actually I'd like to see a lot of kids 10 to 13 year olds see Wirth play. I remember a few years ago when Silsbee met Hudson in the Regional Semi Final. Hudson had a kid who looked a lot like Wirth. In warm ups I just dismissed him as just a guy that maybe gets to play from time to time. They announce the starting line up and low and behold. Then the the game starts and this guy proceeds to light it up. The Tigers were just about helpless to stop him. And he was absolutely not fast. He was smooooooooth though. Deceptive. He led Hudson to a 3 point lead at the half. The Tigers were a little shell shocked but they came out turned it on and ran way to a 19 point win. He didn't have that much help either. If there had been one more like him on the court for the Hornets it would have been a question.

We're always impressed with Bush. But I've got to say that I"m very very impressed with Wirth as well. I don't know how important he is from game to game but last night he was the essential element. Without Wirth they lose by 15. What a great basketball sense he has. Right place at the right time. And when push came to shove he wanted the ball and he delivered. Is that what it's like with him all the time? And the thing is that when they run out for warm ups he's the LEAST likely looking kid bet be the backbone of the team. Just an average, forgive me but I have to say it, scrawny looking kid. There's nothing scrawny about his game. Our Tigers are a little bit better but this is a really good team. I predict they will make it to the Regional Tournament or to Yates, whichever comes first. The silly kids are always chanting "overrated" at Silsbee but when it comes to Hawks I'll chant "underrated".

Coach Wise was here tonight I think. They play Scarborough tomorrow night.

I asked him about that. It’s like who needs transition when you can dominate the boards on both ends and go over any kind of pressure. But yea, it’s the same old fast paced thing. They aren’t No. 1 for nothing.

True but he was talking big big, 6-11, 6-7, situations where the shortest guy on the court is 6-3.

Sat behind a Yates guy. He was impressed with the scrappiness and heart of both teams. But the Lions size would overpower either.

Lived up to it’s billing. Tigers made lots of mistakes in the last minutes to blow a lead. Hawks had a lot to do with that and capitalized. I go back to my contention that the Hawks deserve to be in the top 25.

Just what we figured. They both have their strengths and weaknesses. I am surprised at the pace HJ wants to play at. But they are good in transition so it works.

HJ has more and Silsbee has more lately. That's fair.

It's interesting that this 4A game gets more attention than the local 5A and 6A games? And we've got the No. 9 and 10 ranked 6A schools and the No. 5 ranked 5A school but threads for those teams just don't draw the same interest as this little 4A thing does. What are the reasons for that? Obviously a long standing consistent rivalry is one reason and probably the main one. Add to that the fact these teams regularly advance pretty far in the playoffs. Is there anything else? Is it possible that for some reason 4A level basketball is the sweet spot for meaningful play at the high school level? Big enough but not too big? Even Lumberton games get more attention here. Is all this purely a feature of the nature of this forum or is it more universal than that? Just wondering.

And that controversial no call last year at the buzzer is still fresh in their memories. I don't remember the name of the young man but he just might have hit all three to force OT. But it was not to be. Then in the rematch at Silsbee the Tigers put on a clinic in the first half and built a 43 to 18 lead at the end of 2. Last year was painful for them. This time though the matchup frankly looks to be in HJ's favor. This is by far the best shot they've had in years.

I don't understand the logic of the "overrated" chant. If you best a highly ranked team that is in reality overrated then, well, okay. But if you beat a highly ranked team that deserves their ranking then it makes what you did look much better. Maybe the logic is simply that high school kids can just be crass from time to time even when it makes no sense. Looking back I suppose I'd have to plead guilty myself. But I also don't understand why HJ is not ranked. We may find out on the court tomorrow that the Hawks are actually better than the Tigers. Wouldn't surprise me one little bit. If that happens I'll be chanting "Underrated" and I'll be the Hawks biggest fan if they get a shot at Yates. Naturally I want the Tigers to always win. But lately there's this new dynamic that's sort of the subtext of Region 3 and it's 22-4A vs. Jack Yates and it really doesn't matter which 22-4A team stops them as long as somebody does. Last year they beat both of us and I hated that. Certainly there's nobody in their own district, 23 that can remotely challenge them. 17 and 18 are pretty strong but really 22 is the best shot the region has of stopping the Magnetic Lions. Hey, that's pretty good. That's what I'm calling them from now on, the Magnetic Lions. Wait, I'm being crass aren't I. Oops.

That won't happen. Seems like he's just a step behind. When they put him in early it's one foul after another. In my humble opinion he really should be playing JV so he can get lots and lots of playing time in real game situations. He would start of course and he'd have to run, run, run. And that's what he needs. Plus Silsbee's JV can use the help. They lost to HF last night and to WOS in overtime last week. He's just a freshman his time will come and then watch out.

And magnet schools and charter schools. How about this. Force charters and magnets to compete at or above 5A. They can have as many kids as they want but they aren't permitted to compete below 5A. Hows that for a rule change? Give the small schools a shot. Of course if you'd given Liberty Hill any more of a shot they'd be the reigning state champs.

Is it a snub that HJ isn’t in the TABC top 25? I’ll bet that most of us who are following 22-4A call this game between HJ and the No. 14 Tigers a toss up.

Decent game by HF. They had their competitive moments. Every time the Tigers got a little sloppy the Horns would narrow the lead, bring it under 20. So the breakaway never happened. Tigers had lots and lots of turnovers, maybe trying to get a little too much out of a situation. I guess it's just the way they are. Sets the stage nicely for Friday.

The Horns are hanging in there. Couple of moments when it could have gotten away from them. Bush is in some other universe. The HF kids are chanting the obligatory “overrated” thing. Which is not true with the Tigers ranked 14th. I’m glad I made the drive because HF is making a game of it.

Is this stall an all game long thing for HF or just in the closing minutes? I wasn't planning on making the trip but this stall thing interests me. It may be boring but it's enticing me to make a drive I wasn't planning on. I was going to watch the girls game at home. Anyway, WOS has seen the gamut in one week. The Silsbee game Tuesday was played at an almost frantic pace and now this on Friday.

Is it something they do all the time? Are they going to try it Tuesday? That would be interesting. Anyway it's been an interesting week for the Mustangs. Talk about your contrasts. The pace at the Silsbee game Tuesday was positively frantic.... and very entertaining. The Tigers were like a bunch of Tasmanian Devils and WOS got caught in the vortex.

Silsbee at 18 seemed appropriate give the reality on the court. But having seen the game Tuesday I think the rise to 14 is fair. The Tigers can be beaten by height but they can compete with anybody who isn’t much taller. They are starting to gel.

Shades of last year. A quick run and it’s 45-22

I see a split with HJ with each team winning at home. The big question is can both win all the other games? Frankly I don't think so. Somebody is going to have a letdown somewhere along the line and that will decide the district. And that letdown could come at the hands of any of several teams including WOS. HJ beat WOS fairly handily back in Dec. but things change. Teams come into their own, find that best rotation and most importantly, get lucky. If WOS keeps this game at 10 or under it will indicate they are capable of upsetting either Silsbee or HJ at home. If you like not knowing how things are going to turn out then this year is going to be much better that the last 4 have been in 22 4A.

Don't forget the sea captains! Lots of tall athletic kids want to be sea captains. I'm kidding of course. Several high schools are involved in the maritime program and it's totally legit and commendable.