Comanches pull away to grab district title, 77-56
Tuesday, February 15, 2011
by Dave Mundy, Gonzales Cannon Sports Editor
Gonzales Cannon Article | Shiner Comanche Basketball | Return to Shiner Comanche Sports Home Page
SHINER -- As the ball left Kelby Mayberry’s fingertips, you could see the face of Shiner basketball coach Wendell Boner start to scrunch up in preparation for a spirited "what-the-heck-did-you-take-THAT-shot-for?" tirade.
Shiner's Evel Jones takes a snip out of the net as the Comanches celebrate their district title. Gonzales Cannon photos
The 20-foot jumper was, after all, tossed up from an awkward angle, off- balance, and there was an open man underneath the basket.
It hit nothing but net.
Boner did an abrupt 180-degree spin, threw his arms into the air and gave the crowd in the stands his best smirk.
Matt Pohler launches a jumper
"I told him I shouldn’t have said anything about it," Boner said afterward, "because he was ‘on.’"
Mayberry’s shot with just over six minutes to play gave the Comanches a cushion and ignited a 24-3 run that enabled Shiner to blow open a tight game against Yorktown and run off with a 77-56 victory and the District 28-1A Division 1 championship.
"It’s been a long time since Shiner won a district championship in basketball," Boner said. "These kids have worked their butts off. Just a month ago, you could see they were a different team. Now they have a first-round bye in the playoffs."
The Comanches were clinging to a 51-48 lead when Mayberry hit his off- balance jumper, and was followed moments later by a fast-break layup by Matt Pohler and then an inside bucket by Trevon Flowers that extended the Shiner lead to 57-48.
Kelby Mayberry pulls down a rebound
Mayberry sandwiched a baseline drive in between a hook shot by Yorktown’s Seth Mattox and a free throw by Rodryck Williams before the Comanches scored 16 straight points over a four-minute stretch to bury the Wildcats. Mayberry finished with a game-high 25 points.
Until the Comanches’ late run, the clash between the district’s two front-runners -- each entered the game 6-1 in league action -- was a nip-and-tuck battle, although Shiner never trailed after the opening moments.
Evel Jones drives for a layup
Shiner appeared ready to break things open early, in fact, bolting to a 23-12 lead after eight minutes with an 11-1 run over the final 2:41 keyed by strong penetration by Pohler, who canned 16 points and had four assists. But Yorktown, a team that thrives on perimeter shooting, found the range in the second quarter and made it a two-point game at intermission when Tevin Slade drilled a 3-pointer from downtown in the final seconds of the half.
After manning up for much of the first half, the Wildcats opened the second in a tight zone and tied the game briefly at 38 when Mattox laid in an offensive rebound. Mayberry put the Comanches back on top with a short jumper, but Shiner couldn’t extend its lead beyond three until the fourth- quarter run began.
Kelby Mayberry drives the lane
Flowers added 17 points for the Comanches, while Mayberry and Kenneth Coleman each pulled down 11 rebounds as Shiner out-rebounded Yorktown by a whopping 49-27 margin.
Slade led the Wildcats with 18 points, while Jayden Barefield had 16 to go with four blocked shots and Erin Barefield had 10.
As the Cannon went to press Wednesday, the Comanches scheduled a warm-up game at 6 p.m. Friday in Waelder against the Wildcats. Shiner will face the winner of the Normangee-Big Sandy bi-district game next week.
SHINER 77, YORKTOWN 56 YORKTOWN -- Williams 0 1-2 1, Slade 8 0-0 18, Ybarra 1 0-0 3, E.Barefield 4 1-2 10, J.Barefield 8 0-2 16, Mattox 4 0-0 8. Totals 25 2-6 56. SHINER -- Flowers 8 0-0 17, Jones 4 0-0 8, Baray 0 0-0 0, Mayberry 12 1-1 25, Coleman 3 3-6 9, Pohler 6 4-5 16, Smith 1 0-0 2, Arledge 0 0-0 0. Totals 34 8-12 77. Yorktown 12 22 10 12 -- 56 Shiner 23 13 11 30 -- 77 3-Point Goals: Yorktown 4 (Slade 2, Ybarra, E.Barefield), Shiner 1 (Flowers). Total fouls: Yorktown 8, Shiner 6. Rebounds: Yorktown 27 (J.Barefield 9, Mattox 8), Shiner 49 (Coleman 11, Mayberry 11, Flowers 8). Steals: Yorktown 16 (E.Barefield 7), Shiner 8 (Jones 3). Assists: Yorktown 8 (E.Barefield 5), Shiner 14 (Pohler 4, Mayberry 4). Blocked Shots: Yorktown: J.Barefield 4, Shiner: Coleman, Pohler. JV Score: Yorktown 45, Shiner 37.
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