The Cooldown: Week 20
Last week brought about the second round of district games for some districts while others wrapped up their first go-around of district opponents. That means this weeks’ coming games start to really get important as playoff pictures come into focus. Check out last weeks’ recap, players-of-the-week and more.
Tomball Memorial continues to impress
A year after the Tomball Memorial football squad surprised 15-6A with a dominant run, the basketball program is doing the same.
Memorial hoops went 17-70 between 2018-2020 according to TMHS basketball Twitter account. The Wildcats are 20-5 this season, surpassing the entire win total for three full seasons between ’18 and ’20 before the regular season is even over. It is perhaps the best turnaround of any program in the area this year.
Tomball Memorial took on Klein Oak this weekend and the Wildcats continued their winning ways. It was a hot start for Memorial, who blanked Oak 17-0 in the opening quarter. Oak did a good job of bouncing back to make it a closer game in the second half, but couldn’t overcome the slow start.
Judson Thompson had a big night for the Wildcats and he’ll need to keep it up this week. Memorial hosts 12-12 Tomball and travels to 6-18 Klein Cain. They will need to win both to keep pace with Klein, who leads the district.
Cy Ranch survives Cy Park in dunk-fest thriller
Cy Ranch won twice last week to keep a perfect record in district play, but it wasn’t without a scare.
The Mustangs had to battle an explosive Cy Park squad and that matchup didn’t disappoint. Muo Muoneke – who was nominated to be a McDonald’s All-American last week – put on a personal dunk contest but it wasn’t to be outdone by Harold Perkins and Cy Park.
Muoneke and Mikey Hawkins had a fantastic game for Cy Ranch. Meanwhile, Cy Park had four scorers in double figures with Perkins and Kendall Cross tying for the team lead in points with 15 apiece. Quentin Beverly added 11 and Nate Livingston tallied 10.
Cy Ranch will face 3-15 Cy Lakes on Wednesday before a titanic weekend showdown with Cy Falls, the only other team in 16-6A with a perfect district record. Cy Park is currently in a three-way tie for the final playoff spot with plenty of games left. They’ll need to capitalize this week against Cy Springs and Cy Lakes, each winnable games.
Langham Creek girls take down Cy Falls
Langham Creek entered the week ranked No. 19 in the state and for good reason. The Lady Lobos picked up two wins last week to remain the only undefeated team in district play.
In a 52-35 win against Cy Falls, the Lady Lobos leaned on outstanding seniors Peyton Foster and Saija Cleveland, who scored 13 points and 12 points respectively. Junior Aniyah Sanford kept the ball moving, tallying six assists while Cleveland had four assists of her own. Cleveland finished with 12, five boards and four assists.
Langham Creek has now won 10 in a row and is currently in the drivers’ seat for a district title. That won’t come without a good challenge though; Cy Springs is 22-5 overall and 6-1 in district play and Cy Ranch has had a good season as well. Langham Creek has to play each one more time after beating Cy Springs 46-40 and Cy Ranch 49-44 previously.
Players of the Week
For her all-around effort (12/5/4) in a big district win against a typically solid Cy Falls, Saija Cleveland is my girls’ player-of-the-week! Cleveland will look to lead the Lady Lobos to wins against Bridgeland and Cy Springs this week.
Milestones are always a good thing when making a case for player-of-the-week. Ty Buckmon did just that for College Park by scoring his 1,000th career point this week. It also helps that the Cavs remained perfect in district play by beating Grand Oaks and Willis this week. Next up is Conroe and Oak Ridge.
State Rankings
Here are what the state-wide rankings look like for each classification, updated on January 10.
In 6A, Westfield remains the highest-ranked Houston-area team at No. 3 with a 16-1 record. The Mustangs are followed by Elkins (5), Cy Falls (6), Clear Brook (7), Dickinson (9), Atascocita (10), Shadow Creek (17), Pearland Dawson (18) and Seven Lakes (19).
In 5A, Crosby still holds down the top spot in Houston ranked No. 5 in the state. The Cougars are followed by Katy Paetow (7), Marshall (11), Hightower (12) and Kingwood Park (25).
For 4A, the ranked teams in Houston include Houston Washington (4), Stafford (5), La Marque (7) and Brazosport (22). There are no Houston-area teams ranked in class 3A.