Eastwood's season comes to end in Class 6A boys basketball playoffs
ANDREWS — Finley Bizjack scored 32 points and Conner Lindsey added 23 to lead Byron Nelson past Eastwood, 71-54, on Friday night at the Mustang Arena in the area round of the Class 6A boys basketball playoffs.
Bizjack is a Butler University commit and gave the Eastwood defense fits all night long with his 3-point shooting and aggressive drives to the basket.
"They are good players," Eastwood coach Peter Morales said of Bizjack and Lindsey. "It was a great season for us, we overachieved in many ways. Lots of people didn't pick us to win district, they picked us to finish third, fourth or fifth. But this team played for each other and we had a great season."
Eastwood finishes with 28 wins, a District 1-6A title and a bi-district playoff win against San Angelo Central.
Byron Nelson led 29-24 at halftime behind 15 points from Lindsey and 12 points from Bizjack. The Troopers led 15-13 after one quarter and 19-15 early in the second quarter. Carrera scored 10 to lead the Troopers in the first half and Marcus Bennett scored six.
Byron Nelson took control of the game in the second half and led by double digits for a good portion of the final 16 minutes. Eastwood climbed within eight points, 45-37, early in the fourth quarter on two Carrera free throws, but couldn't close the gap.
At one point in the fourth quarter, the Bobcats made 18 straight free throws. Carrera led the Troopers with 19 points, Devin Falk-Ramirez had 15 points and Bennett scored eight.
"I just tried to raise my effort in this game and help our team as much as possible," Carrera said. "Byron Nelson had some second chances on the offensive end and hit some big shots."
Added Morales: "The future is bright for our program. We lose six seniors, who impacted this program and we learned a lot about our kids this year. We have some quality players back and our JV and freshmen teams were solid."
Class 5A area round games
Chapin advanced to the regional quarterfinals for the third straight season with an 82-62 win against Amarillo Palo Duro. Bryson Goldsmith paced the Huskies with 28 points, Idalius Coleman scored 13 and Diego Villanueva scored 13.
Chapin was down 18-4 in the first quarter but came back behind strong play from the bench, including Peyton Parker, who made a trio of 3-pointers.
"We had a big third quarter and outscored them 28-8," Chapin coach Rodney Lewis said. "Our bench play was great and gave us a lift. Peyton has been solid for us all year. In the second half, we went back to what we do well, we played good defense and were solid on offense."
In Hobbs, N.M. Parkland defeated Amarillo Tascosa, 65-55, to set up a regional quarterfinal date with Chapin. Jashaun Kinnard scored 22 points to lead the Matadors, Julian Moreno scored 20 and Jordan Diaz scored 10.
The Matadors won their first area title since 2007.
"Isiah Medrano played well at point guard, Jordan did a great job inside for us and Julian and Jashaun scored the ball well," Parkland coach Jeremy Vanley said. "It was a good team effort from everyone. Tascosa is a good team and we had to battle. Our kids settled down after Tascosa took the lead in the third quarter and we finished strong."
In Fort Stockton, Andress lost 75-67 to Lubbock Monterey. The Eagles were the second-place team in District 1-5A this season. Jamal Williams led Andress with 24 points, Cam Gulley scored 18 and Ezra Wolfgang scored 10.
In Andrews, Canutillo lost, 50-32, to Amarillo High. The Eagles employed the slow down offense in the first half and trailed 5-4 after the first quarter. But the Sandies outscored the Eagles, 13-0, in the second quarter to lead 18-4 at halftime. Zach Brown scored 10 points for the Sandies in the first half, seven of which came in the second quarter. The Eagles had some good looks at the basket but couldn't find the mark.
Brown led all scorers on the night with 20 points.
In the second half, the Eagles scored 28 points, including 13 from senior Kiki Salmon, who hit four 3-pointers.
"We played better in the second half and made some shots," Salmon said. "We never backed down. Amarillo is a good team and very efficient."
Salmon, along with Gio Gutierrez, Joseph Martinez and LJ Martin played their final game for the Eagles on Friday, a group that helped the Eagles find great success.
"It's a a great group," Martinez said of the four seniors. "We've been teammates for a long time and we just tried to build a strong legacy in this program and set the future for the players coming up."
Added Canutillo coach Larry Morales: "We fought until the end. This team never gave up this season and kept battling. We finished strong in the second half against a really good team."
Class 4A area round games
In Andrews, Canyon High defeated Bowie, 63-23, to advance to the regional quarterfinals. Canyon led 20-6 after one quarter and 38-9 at halftime. The Bears finish the season with a 15-16 record and a bi-distict playoff win against Fabens.
In Andrews, Harmony Science Academy saw its season end with a 73-48 loss to Canyon Randall. The Tigers, who won the District 1-4A title and a bi-district title against San Elizario, played much better in the second half after a slow start. The Tigers scored 33 points in the second half.
Canyon Randall advances to the regional quarterfinals next week and Harmony Science Academy finishes with a 28-6 record.
"We showed a lot of resilience and I'm proud of how we competed," Harmony Science Academy coach Ray Rodriguez said. "We did some good things throughout the game. I'm proud of our eight seniors, who have helped make this program what it is."
Aaron Hernandez led Harmony Science Academy with 13 points, Diego Balderrama scored 12 and Rah Sanchez added 11 points.
"We made some adjustments in the second half and we played hard and tough," Sanchez said. "This season meant so much to us. My teammates are great, my coaches are great. We kept playing hard the entire game."
Added Hernandez: "We came out in the second half and executed much better. We got some good looks at the basket and took advantage. Randall's athleticism was a factor and they had good size."
KJ Thomas led the Raiders with 20 points.
Randall led 31-15 at the half behind 10 points from Devin Beccas, who scored 10 of the team's first 12 points. Sanchez had a nice first half for the Tigers, scoring 10 of the team's 15 points. The Raiders never trailed in the first half and led 17-6 after the first quarter.
In Hobbs, N.M., Riverside defeated Midland Greenwood, 58-54. Jose Guardado led the Riverside with 18 points from Derek Vasquez, Jaylen Dean scored 12 and Joel Saenz each added 10 points for Riverside.
Riverside is headed to the regional quarterfinals for the first time since 1998.
"Our defense played lights out," Riverside coach Javier Vela said. "Our kids came with a great effort. Jose Guardado played outstanding on both ends of the court."
In Fort Stockton, Seminole defeated Austin, 57-34.
More: Eastwood defeats Franklin Edward Avila comes off bench to hit two free throws to lead Eastwood to win vs. Franklin
Felix F. Chavez can be reached at fchavez@elpasotimes.com; @Fchavezeptimes on Twitter
This article originally appeared on El Paso Times: Eastwood's season ends in Class 6A boys basketball playoffs
