Second quarter determines outcome for the Mustangs against Wolves

The Marble Falls High School boys basketball team lost to San Antonio Davenport 75-61 Dec. 12.

Both teams played to a 20-20 tie after the first period. But the Wolves (13-3) began the second period with a 9-2 run for a 29-22 advantage. In all Davenport outscored the Mustangs 21-9 in the second quarter to build a 41-29 lead at the half they wouldn’t relinquish.

Marble Falls outscored Davenport 16-15 in the third stanza and the Wolves dropped in 19 points in the final period to the Mustangs' 16.

“Credit to Davenport,” Marble Falls head coach Travis Crain said. “They made big plays when they had to. We went dry with four minutes left in the second quarter. That second quarter is what got us behind.”

Indeed, every time the Mustangs looked poised to trim the deficit, the Wolves hit a long jumper and followed it with a steal and a lay-up. They also made sure to rebound.

Still, Marble Falls kept working. Trailing 56-45 to begin the fourth quarter, junior point guard Tidus Willie hit junior guard Garen Jones for a bucket. Senior center Noah Lyon added a bucket on a spin move from the low block, and senior guard Kody Smith outraced everyone for a lay-up off the press breaker to cut into the deficit 60-51.

But Davenport responded with a 3-pointer. And though Willie sliced his way to the basket for a lay-up and senior guard Davis Dreisbach scored a fastbreak bucket on a steal to stay within striking distance at 63-55, the Wolves were ready to answer back. They ended the contest on a 12-6 run.

“They’d call a timeout and hit a 3-pointer and scored on a lob on an inbound play,” Crain said. “That stopped our run. Those plays in the second half didn’t allow us to get out of the hole.”

Willie led with 16 points followed by Smith with 14, Dreisbach added 13, and Jones scored 10. Senior forward Cooper Cochran dropped in 4 points and junior guard Roman Brown and Lyon each added 2.

“We had four players in double figures," Crain said. "We moved the ball well at times.”

Dreisbach, who missed much of the Subway Classic with an injury, didn’t need long to shake off the rust. He attacked the basket without fear, drawing fouls and contact.

“He’s a competitive kid who lays it on the line for his teammates,” the coach said. “He’s a gamer. When you have someone with that energy, it’s a positive. We have a ton of competitive guys who want to get after it. Davis has that. He raised everyone’s intensity level. He’s a great leader for us on that.”

The Wolves seemed to be content with allowing multiple Mustangs to score as long as Smith didn’t take over the shooting. He scored 10 of his 14 points in the opening stanza.

“They did have an answer for Kody early,” Crain said. “He knocked a few shots down early. Credit to Davenport for adjusting to him. They sped us up and we weren’t able to rotate on the backside. We didn’t get a lot of clear looks at the basket. When Kody got hot in the first quarter, they adjust - ed. They made it more difficult on him.”

Marble Falls welcomes Salado Tuesday, Dec. 19, returns to the court with the subvarsities playing at 5 p.m. and the varsity at 7 p.m.

Jennifer Fierro publishes re - ports about area youth athletic events on her website TexasChalk - Talk.com. To send her a note, email fierrojennifer@yahoo.com.