Newspaper Article Credit: Corpus Christi Caller-Times.
Calallen boys claim District 31-4A championship
Deron Belford leads Wildcats with 18 points
By George Vondracek (Contact)
Originally published 02:54 a.m., February 13, 2008
Updated 02:54 a.m., February 13, 2008
Calallen High School had enough Jazz played on it Tuesday night to
nearly acquire a severe case of the blues.
But in the end, the Wildcats' pressure was enough to overcome a virtual
one-man show by Flour Bluff's Jazz Evans.
The Wildcats' pressing defense forced three quick turnovers in overtime,
which they parlayed into a six-point burst to beat the Hornets 58-53 and
claim the District 31-4A championship outright.
"Oh my gosh, I thought we were on the ropes, ready to go under," said
Calallen coach Jeff Crews, whose ballclub last won the district title
two seasons ago.
The Wildcats were indeed on the ropes, trailing by 11 midway through
the second half. That deficit was largely through the efforts of Evans,
who scored 32 of his team's 53 points before exiting midway through overtime
with an ankle injury.
But in the extra 4-minute session, Calallen (9-1 district, 19-4 overall)
converted three Bluff turnovers into a layup from Eric Schulz, two free throws
by Scott Ryan and a basket by Deron Belford to take a 55-49 lead with one
minute, 10 seconds remaining.
"We handled the pressure and were able to force some things," Crews said.
"I think we controlled it. Getting Scott Ryan to the free-throw line was key."
That was enough to undo Flour Bluff, which had its 32-21 lead shaved to one by
the end of the third quarter.
"I thought we had them, but that's a sign of a real good team," said Bluff coach
Robert Dodd, whose Hornets (8-2, 17-14) were pressured into 23 turnovers. "They
just fought and fought and wore us down."
Ryan hit five of six free throws down the stretch to help the Wildcats seal the
win. He finished with 10 points. Belford's 18 led Calallen and Michael Conroy
added another 10.
Calallen had little answer for Evans, who had 19 points at the break to help give
the Hornets -- who will draw Mercedes in the opening round of the Class 4A
playoffs -- a 25-20 lead.
"Oh gosh, he was unconscious in the first half. I think he had 19 and the rest
of (the Hornets) had six," said Crews, whose Wildcats were beaten by the Hornets
42-39 in the teams' first meeting on Jan. 25 at Flour Bluff's gym. "He about outscored
us. We were contesting shots, and he's still knocking them down."
Evans exited with 1:38 to play in overtime with the ankle injury. Forced to foul
after another turnover, the Bluff could managed just two more late baskets,
both from Marcus Williams. Ryan sank two of three late free throws to ice the contest.
District 31-4A boys
Calallen 58, Flour Bluff 53 (OT)
F. Bluff 12 13 9 15 4--53
Calallen 12 8 13 16 9--58
FB -- Adrian Washington 4, Anthony Abeto 6, Jazz Evans 32, Brian Spears 3, Rashon Flores 2, Marcus
Williams 6.
C -- Eric Schulz 4, Scott Ryan 10, Dustin Vaughn 8, Deron Belford 18, Michael Conroy 10, Josh
Anderson 8.
3-pointers -- FB, Evans 3, Spears; Calallen, Belford 2, Ryan.
Records -- Flour Bluff 17-14 (8-2 district); Calallen 19-4 (9-1).
JV -- Calallen 65, FB 52.
Scoreboard
......................Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 OT1
Flour Bluff (16-14)...12 13 09 15 - 4 53 FINAL
Calallen (19-4) ......12 08 13 16 - 9 58
February 12, 2008 - Calallen H.S.
Flour Bluff Scoring
................. PTS 3FG -- 3FGP
Jasmine Evans.....32 - 3-3 100.0%
Anthony Abeto..... 6
Marcus Williams... 6
Adrian Washington..4
Brian Spears.......3 - 1-1 100.0%
Calallen Scoring
................. PTS 3FG
Deron Belford.... 18 - 2-2 100.0%
Michael Conroy... 10
Scott Ryan....... 10 - 1-1 100.0%
Dustin Vaughan.... 8
Josh Anderson .....8
Eric Shultz........4
