Scoop27
03-03-2015, 01:11 PM
By JOEL LUNA joel.luna@thefacts.com | 0 comments
FREEPORT — The Brazosport Exporters, coming off a humongous win in the Class 4A Region IV playoffs, continue today against an old nemesis in a rubber-match showdown.
Brazosport (20-12) and La Marque (29-5) meet at 7 p.m. today at Alvin High School in the quarterfinal round, just a win away from the Region IV tournament in Kingsville this weekend.
Early season struggles for the Exporters didn’t make them look like a playoff team, let alone a region qualifier. But here they are.
“Early on, I envisioned this team to be real good,” Brazosport coach Ondra Waddy said. “There were several games that we lost, we would go into the locker room and express to them what I envisioned for this team. As a coaching staff we’ve been preaching it all year, so it was disappointing early in the year when we didn’t see the type of team that we thought we envisioned.
“Sure enough they started working together and here we are, not a surprise because I know we have the talent,” Waddy said.
With both Brazosport and La Marque out of District 28-4A, the Exporters won the second district meeting at home, (66-57) after having lost the first meeting at La Marque (59-45).
Brazosport beat fourth-ranked Liberty Hill (62-56) on Friday in what could be a big boost for the team’s confidence.
“The guys went in with the type of confidence that we needed to beat a state-ranked, undefeated team,” Waddy said. “Right now, the confidence is brewing and we have to maintain focus — that’s what it is going to boil down to, one game at a time.”
Genesis Green, Chris Rossow and Angel Trevino were a big part of the successful outing against Liberty Hill, combining for 44 points. This trio, along with the rest of the Ships, will have to keep up the intensity against a Cougar squad that hasn’t backed down from anyone.
So far in the playoffs, La Marque has gotten by La Vernia (55-39) and Bay City (58-46). There have been different leading scorers for the Cougars, with sophomore forward LaDerrious Arvie leading them against La Vernia on Friday with 14 points, followed closely by junior guard Tavier Blaine with 13. Also contributing were Jauron Freeman, who chipped in 10 points, and sophomore Raymond Stubblefield, who had eight assists and eight rebounds.
Stubblefield led the Cougars in their win against the Blackcats with 16 points. Freeman also came through in that contest with 15 points and Blaine had 12.
“They’ve been playing well lately, and for our games against each other, each team had different players missing in each meeting,” Waddy said. “They are athletic and have some speed and guys who can shoot it. They do have some inside players as well, and this will be a different matchup than what we had against Liberty Hill. This will be a faster game with an athletic team.”
Brazosport’s last visit to the region tournament was in 2013, when the Ships lost to Georgetown (53-50) in the semifinals.
The Ships coach knows what it will take to get back there.
“We need to be smart and take care of the basketball. We need to continue to play our style of ball. Which is with pressure, handling their pressure and continue to make plays for one another,” Waddy said. “If we can do that, we have a good chance of winning tomorrow.”
The winner moves onto the region semifinal, where either Sinton or Fredricksburg will be waiting Friday.
FREEPORT — The Brazosport Exporters, coming off a humongous win in the Class 4A Region IV playoffs, continue today against an old nemesis in a rubber-match showdown.
Brazosport (20-12) and La Marque (29-5) meet at 7 p.m. today at Alvin High School in the quarterfinal round, just a win away from the Region IV tournament in Kingsville this weekend.
Early season struggles for the Exporters didn’t make them look like a playoff team, let alone a region qualifier. But here they are.
“Early on, I envisioned this team to be real good,” Brazosport coach Ondra Waddy said. “There were several games that we lost, we would go into the locker room and express to them what I envisioned for this team. As a coaching staff we’ve been preaching it all year, so it was disappointing early in the year when we didn’t see the type of team that we thought we envisioned.
“Sure enough they started working together and here we are, not a surprise because I know we have the talent,” Waddy said.
With both Brazosport and La Marque out of District 28-4A, the Exporters won the second district meeting at home, (66-57) after having lost the first meeting at La Marque (59-45).
Brazosport beat fourth-ranked Liberty Hill (62-56) on Friday in what could be a big boost for the team’s confidence.
“The guys went in with the type of confidence that we needed to beat a state-ranked, undefeated team,” Waddy said. “Right now, the confidence is brewing and we have to maintain focus — that’s what it is going to boil down to, one game at a time.”
Genesis Green, Chris Rossow and Angel Trevino were a big part of the successful outing against Liberty Hill, combining for 44 points. This trio, along with the rest of the Ships, will have to keep up the intensity against a Cougar squad that hasn’t backed down from anyone.
So far in the playoffs, La Marque has gotten by La Vernia (55-39) and Bay City (58-46). There have been different leading scorers for the Cougars, with sophomore forward LaDerrious Arvie leading them against La Vernia on Friday with 14 points, followed closely by junior guard Tavier Blaine with 13. Also contributing were Jauron Freeman, who chipped in 10 points, and sophomore Raymond Stubblefield, who had eight assists and eight rebounds.
Stubblefield led the Cougars in their win against the Blackcats with 16 points. Freeman also came through in that contest with 15 points and Blaine had 12.
“They’ve been playing well lately, and for our games against each other, each team had different players missing in each meeting,” Waddy said. “They are athletic and have some speed and guys who can shoot it. They do have some inside players as well, and this will be a different matchup than what we had against Liberty Hill. This will be a faster game with an athletic team.”
Brazosport’s last visit to the region tournament was in 2013, when the Ships lost to Georgetown (53-50) in the semifinals.
The Ships coach knows what it will take to get back there.
“We need to be smart and take care of the basketball. We need to continue to play our style of ball. Which is with pressure, handling their pressure and continue to make plays for one another,” Waddy said. “If we can do that, we have a good chance of winning tomorrow.”
The winner moves onto the region semifinal, where either Sinton or Fredricksburg will be waiting Friday.