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Our big three played great--except at the free throw line-- and Grayson Sutherland knocked down at least three 3s, so we were pretty good offensively. We were very good on D. Great hustle, overall. Kelly seems like a very good team, but our D forced them into too many turnovers, and they started to miss some of those deep 3s, too. Good quality win.

#23 is the most beastly kid we've encountered this year, a 3A version of LBJ. He shredded our press repeatedly, went full-court, one-on-five, to finish with and-ones. Sigh... We did a pretty good job of denying him the ball in their half-court sets--but then they'd patiently swing the ball until they got a wide-open three, and knock it down. They were good, made their free throws. I'm proud of our effort. When Trey fouled out, I thought we were in real trouble. A few turnovers were all the difference, in regulation, and especially in OT. Surely does hurt to lose, and at home!

I hope Josef Brown will have the time of his life up there. Pack warm clothes!

No, the pregame tech had nothing to do with the JV nonsense. It was indeed for dunking in warmups. When the refs walk in, you'll notice they always blow their whistle. That's to let the guys know to stop with the dunking-- if the refs see dunking in warmups after that, it's a T.

Great news!

All of HJ's losses have been to decent 4A schools (Nederland 79-63, Central 68-61, Kingwood Park 59-53). What concerns me about my Hawks is how inconsistent our intensity has been. When we have put it all out on the court, like vs. Barber's Hill, HJ has looked Austin-worthy. Other games left me worried about whether we'd make the playoffs this year-- seriously! Anyway, it's still essentially preseason. We're 13-3, a little dinged-up and sickly (probably about like everyone else), and we still have some learning to do. I think we have some un-tapped (nice pun, eh? :) talent that will develop over the next couple months. Here's hoping we peak come playoff time!

Well, at least you're not garbage. :-*

That was Gladewater Sabine, a pretty darn good ball club. They had size, shooters, and good fundamentals. We were down 7 at the half, and I thought we were in trouble... We started the 2nd half with a 7-0 run, and I thought we'd be ok... They responded with their own 7-0 run, and I knew we were in trouble... We finally turned it up a notch, and started hitting shots. Nice grind-it-out win against a quality opponent.

As an HJ fan, I had assumed we were just having a terribly off night in our loss to Nederland. Now I know better. Wow! Congratulations!

I watched him in awe. Imagine a truly ambidextrous 6'6" scoring machine with slick point guard skills. He played point center for the Bumblebees. He could drop 50-60 whenever he had a notion to do so, and often did--and there was no three-point line back then. "Earl Evans HAS to be first team. Rated the #2 player in the country his senior year (mid 70's) behind only Moses Malone." That reminded me: Earl the Pearl actually beat Moses Malone in the one-on-one championship game that was a part of the festivities at the Seamco Classic, a HS All-America game in Kentucky.

I would brag on Clay Davis and Jeff Lee, but I do not want anyone to lure them away from HJ!

Or was it '75? He was easily the best high school player this area has seen. I heard drugs ended his career way too early. Does anyone know if he is still alive?

All HJ Tournament games are being played on time, as scheduled, per Coach Davis. Go Hawks!

We did a pretty good job in the first half creating transition buckets off our press and traps. When LCM got the ball across half court, they played a slow, methodical, patient, half-court set. The halftime score of 23-11 I could live with. I thought we were on our way to more of the same in the 2nd half, with maybe a few runs to pad the score. Instead, we lost our intensity on D, stopped pushing the ball, and became woefully bogged-down in our half-court sets. We started turning it over like crazy, too. The guys looked lethargic, maybe tired, in the 2nd half-- like someone else would pick it up... Jarvis never really got it going; we usually struggle when that's the case. We were lucky to get out of there with the W. Congratulations to the sophomore who hit that 3 at the buzzer! Congrats also to the LCM student section: y'all help your team.

The Amazing Kreskin says: OF 65 Ned 64 (in OT)

Karnack the Magnificent says: Silsbee 72 Central 58

What in the world happened?

Now that looked like HJ basketball. Afterwards, Coach said, "We're Baaaaack!" Very impressive performance. Everyone played well, but Jarvis played out of his mind.

They did have a couple tall kids, including one who might be responsble for Sasquatch sightings, but no tall or big "talent." It was like playing a team with one big and four Spikes or Baileys on the court. They were jacking, and making, from 30+ feet. One of them pushed Trey from behind while he was dunking, the second-cheapest shot I've seen on a high school court. (Nothing compares to the time that Silsbee kid fractured Donahoe's nose-- and put Donahoe in an overnight coma-- a couple years ago.) Trey's knee is a little sore today, but he says he's ready to go against Barber's Hill at 2 PM today. Jarvis is sick, and still in his shooting slump. Otherwise, the Hawks are showing improvement. Gus is starting to push the ball a little better. Phillip and Trent are playing solid down low-- they're blocking shots to get our fast break off, and finishing a little better around the basket. Jacoby is pressuring the ball well, getting many steals, driving and shooting the ball well. This tournament has been good for the Hawks, so far.

Can he play for the Mustangs? Maybe get some exposure, go up the semi-pro ranks to the NBDL, to the Euro, or even to the NBA level? Basketball-wise, I'm not sure how far he can go. It's possible he could be another Daniel Gibson. I was coaching the SETX SLAM against his PA Heat team a few summers ago and saw some of his more florid behavior first-hand. I pity him. His inability to control his emotions and behavior is a terrible burden he bears. I'd be surprised if school of any sort is his option. His future hinges on his developing his self-control and talent.

The refs were in mid-season form. Happy Thanksgiving, y'all!

Poppa, I feel you, dawg-- but you didn't see us stink it up against Nederland. Friday, 3:30 pm, at Ozen. And I hope our Hawks are ready for some exercise. This would be a quality win.

Too many ifs to predict: If HJ brings it like they have vs. Kountze & Huntington, we have a good chance for a W. If Jarvis makes his first three point attempt (in which case he tends to make 'em all night), we have a chance to make a bold statement. If we play like we played vs. Nederland, we'll need divine intervention to steal a W. Should be a fun game-- I'll predict that much. Then we get to sit in shock and awe of the Silsbee team's skill and athleticism.

10/10? Wow! His free throw form looks really good. The way he was throwing down in warmups was nice. Looks like he's got his basketball legs now. The overall team hustle was back last night. Now let's see what we got for Central.

Trey was 8/8 FT.