(Press photo/Constancio Martinez Jr.)
By CONSTANCIO MARTINEZ, JR.
Special to the PRESS
This Tuesday, January 9, the (16-6) Port Isabel Tarpons hosted the (9-12) Hidalgo Pirates in a district showdown.
Before the matchup, the Tarpons were riding a 10-game winning streak, including three district wins over Zapata (46-18), Raymondville (75-49), and La Grulla (53-39). Meanwhile, Hidalgo had been struggling this season and had dropped six of its last seven games.
The game quickly became a defensive battle as neither team got a good look at the basket. Three minutes into the game, PI’s Jeffrey Smith was fouled going to the basket and proceeded to make both free throws. Smith then managed to steal the ball and made another move to the basket, but this time, the bucket counted as the Tarpons built an early 5-0 lead.
The Pirates missed their first eight shot attempts but finally made a basket with less than two minutes left in the quarter to make it a 10-2 game. Cleveland Smith responded with a three-pointer and the foul as the Tarpons closed the first quarter with a 16-5 lead.
The Pirates passed the ball more effectively in the second quarter, bypassing the Tarpon’s full-court press. Midway into the quarter, Hidalgo lowered PI’s lead to 22-15. With 15 seconds left in the quarter, Christian Smith intercepted a pass and found twin Cl. Smith running down the court for the easy layup. The Tarpons headed into halftime with a 31-19 lead.
Early in the third quarter, we saw a lull in scoring as turnovers and fouls slowed the game down; even so, the Tarpons extended their lead to 37-21 midway into the stanza. The Tarpons picked up nine steals in the quarter, heading into the final quarter with a 40-25 lead.
The PI reserves came in to start the fourth quarter. The Pirates quickly went on a small 5-0 run, prompting the PI coach to put the starters back in. The Pirates continued building momentum as they converted a 3-pointer followed by a 2-point basket. They now trailed 40-35 with five minutes left in the game. The Tarpons played keep away in the final two minutes with a seven-point lead. Port Isabel secured a 49-38 win as they stay atop the district standings with a 4-0 district record.
Port Isabel’s defense played one of its better games of the season so far. As a team, they racked up a whopping 24 steals. J. Smith finished with 15 points, five steals and three rebounds. Aiden Sanchez chipped in with five points, four steals, four rebounds and one block.
Shaun Moore had five steals and five rebounds. Cl. Smith finished the night as the leading scorer with 19 points; he also had six steals and three rebounds.
The Tarpons will be in action again this Friday, December 12, as they go on the road to take on the La Feria Lions with an 8 p.m. game start.
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