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January 31, 2023
Bulldogs score another OT thriller
By Brady Keane
Bandera Boys Varsity Basketball Head Coach
A back-and-forth game that was within seven points from start to finish, saw the Bandera varsity boys basketball team pull out a thrilling 69-62 overtime win over Navarro Friday night.
Guard Eli Salas connected on a 3-point shot on the Bulldogs’ first possession of the game and Bandera jumped out to a quick 5-0 lead after a fast break layup from Gavin Ortiz. The Panthers woke up and matchup the Bulldogs possession for possession through the first half, taking a 30-29 lead into the break as several Bandera players found themselves in first-half foul trouble. Ortiz gave the Bulldogs the lead with 5:24 remaining in the third on a 3-point shot from the right wing. Navarro regained control late in the third before Salas connected with Noah Barnett on a break to the basket, making it 39-38 in favor or Bandera with 1:43 remaining in the third. The teams proceeded to exchange baskets before Bandera again led after Bryson Holden connected on a mid-range jump shot and Cale Barnett scored on an offensive rebound and putback just before the start of the fourth.
A Noah Barnett free throw gave the Bulldogs a 48-43 lead with 4:48 to go, but the Panthers scored six straight points to take a one-point lead until Barnett again worked his way to the free throw line to tie things up with 2:59 remaining. Kayden Brown found Ortiz in transition for an easy basket to make it 51-49 Bandera with 1:54 left but Navarro again answered the call to tie the game.
Barnett and Salas each made a free throw and Alex Dirck had a huge offensive rebound put back in the final minute to put the Bulldogs in control before chaos ensued. Bandera led 55-51 with four seconds left when a foul put the Panthers on the free throw line. Navarro made the first, missed the second, and a scramble for the ball resulted in the Panthers’ retaining possession on the baseline with 1.5 seconds to go. The Panthers proceeded to bury a contested 3-point shot in the corner as time expired, forcing the game into a four-minute overtime period.
Fortunately, the Bulldogs grabbed control of overtime from the get-go. Dirck won the tip and sent it to Barnett, who found Brown for a 3-point shot from the right wing less than five seconds into OT. Barnett knocked down a pair of free throws to make it 60-55, and Dirck went 2-for-2 from the line to make it 62-55 Bandera with 3:13 left. Navarro trimmed it to 62-59 before Brown knocked down a contested layup, and Salas knocked down a free throw to make it 65-59 Bandera with 1:15 left.
Navarro hit one more three point shot to keep things interesting, but the Bulldogs went 4-for-4 from the foul line in the final seconds to put the game out of reach and escape with the victory. Brown finished with a team-high 18 points, seven rebounds and three steals in the win while Noah Barnett had a double-double and finished with 17 points, 10 rebounds and three assists.
Ortiz had 12 points and five deflections, Dirck had eight points, 13 rebounds and five deflections, and Salas had seven points, six rebounds, six deflections, five steals and four assists. Holden had three points and four rebounds, Cale Barnett had two points, three deflections and two steals, and Isaac Segura had two points and eight rebounds.
The win moved the Bulldogs to 17-13 on the season and, more importantly, 5-3 in District 27-4A play.
Bandera will return to action Tuesday night on the road against Canyon Lake before hosting Fredericksburg on Friday Feb. 3 for Senior Night.
We did not play our best basketball, but good teams find a way to grind out tough wins and our guys came together to get that done Friday night. So many different players stepped up in different ways – it took every member of our team to get that win, and it was a big one for our playoff push. I’m proud of the way we pushed through adversity, especially when it comes to having to respond from a buzzer beater sending the game to overtime. We never wavered and got the job done. Now we have to move forward and get back to work to lock up a playoff berth.
Box score
Bandera 69, Navarro 62 (OT)
Navarro 16 14 10 15 7 62 Bandera 14 15 14 12 14 69
JV
The Bandera JV boys basketball team was shorthanded Friday night but came together and battled their way to a 42-36 win over Navarro to get back on track in district play.
The Bulldogs got key contributions from all nine players in uniform and were led in scoring by Jeffry Thomas, who tallied 15 points in the win. Thomas went 6-of-8 from the free throw line in the fourth quarter to help secure the win. Randon Wheeler also finished in double digits, scoring 12 points to help guide the Bulldogs offensively.
The victory moved Bandera to 11-8 on the season and 3-5 in district play with four games to go in the regular season. The Bulldogs will be back in action Tuesday night on the road against Canyon Lake.
Box score
Bandera 42, Navarro 36
Navarro 6 14 7 9 — 36 Bandera 10 9 14 9 — 42
Freshmen
The Bandera freshman boys basketball team trailed for most of Friday night’s game against Navarro before an offensive explosion in the fourth quarter helped the team avenge an earlier loss to the Panthers in a thrilling 44-35 finish.
The Bulldogs’ comeback effort was sparked by a nine-point fourth quarter effort from Logan Pierce, who knocked down a pair of three pointers in the final eight minutes. Overall, Bandera outscored Navarro 21-9 in the final frame to pull ahead and secure the win.
Pierce finished with a team-high 12 points while Evan Bowman had nine and Gavin Garcia had eight. Riley Moran added seven, Brady Trussell had four and James Bower had three. The Bulldogs moved to 9-10 on the season and 4-4 in district play with the win. Bandera will return to action Tuesday night on the road at Canyon Lake.
Box score
Bandera 44, Navarro 35
Navarro 10 5 11 9 — 35 Bandera 7 9 6 21 — 44
Due to weather, all of the games scheduled for Tuesday have been rescheduled for Thursday.
Guard Eli Salas connected on a 3-point shot on the Bulldogs’ first possession of the game and Bandera jumped out to a quick 5-0 lead after a fast break layup from Gavin Ortiz. The Panthers woke up and matchup the Bulldogs possession for possession through the first half, taking a 30-29 lead into the break as several Bandera players found themselves in first-half foul trouble. Ortiz gave the Bulldogs the lead with 5:24 remaining in the third on a 3-point shot from the right wing. Navarro regained control late in the third before Salas connected with Noah Barnett on a break to the basket, making it 39-38 in favor or Bandera with 1:43 remaining in the third. The teams proceeded to exchange baskets before Bandera again led after Bryson Holden connected on a mid-range jump shot and Cale Barnett scored on an offensive rebound and putback just before the start of the fourth.
A Noah Barnett free throw gave the Bulldogs a 48-43 lead with 4:48 to go, but the Panthers scored six straight points to take a one-point lead until Barnett again worked his way to the free throw line to tie things up with 2:59 remaining. Kayden Brown found Ortiz in transition for an easy basket to make it 51-49 Bandera with 1:54 left but Navarro again answered the call to tie the game.
Barnett and Salas each made a free throw and Alex Dirck had a huge offensive rebound put back in the final minute to put the Bulldogs in control before chaos ensued. Bandera led 55-51 with four seconds left when a foul put the Panthers on the free throw line. Navarro made the first, missed the second, and a scramble for the ball resulted in the Panthers’ retaining possession on the baseline with 1.5 seconds to go. The Panthers proceeded to bury a contested 3-point shot in the corner as time expired, forcing the game into a four-minute overtime period.
Fortunately, the Bulldogs grabbed control of overtime from the get-go. Dirck won the tip and sent it to Barnett, who found Brown for a 3-point shot from the right wing less than five seconds into OT. Barnett knocked down a pair of free throws to make it 60-55, and Dirck went 2-for-2 from the line to make it 62-55 Bandera with 3:13 left. Navarro trimmed it to 62-59 before Brown knocked down a contested layup, and Salas knocked down a free throw to make it 65-59 Bandera with 1:15 left.
Navarro hit one more three point shot to keep things interesting, but the Bulldogs went 4-for-4 from the foul line in the final seconds to put the game out of reach and escape with the victory. Brown finished with a team-high 18 points, seven rebounds and three steals in the win while Noah Barnett had a double-double and finished with 17 points, 10 rebounds and three assists.
Ortiz had 12 points and five deflections, Dirck had eight points, 13 rebounds and five deflections, and Salas had seven points, six rebounds, six deflections, five steals and four assists. Holden had three points and four rebounds, Cale Barnett had two points, three deflections and two steals, and Isaac Segura had two points and eight rebounds.
The win moved the Bulldogs to 17-13 on the season and, more importantly, 5-3 in District 27-4A play.
Bandera will return to action Tuesday night on the road against Canyon Lake before hosting Fredericksburg on Friday Feb. 3 for Senior Night.
We did not play our best basketball, but good teams find a way to grind out tough wins and our guys came together to get that done Friday night. So many different players stepped up in different ways – it took every member of our team to get that win, and it was a big one for our playoff push. I’m proud of the way we pushed through adversity, especially when it comes to having to respond from a buzzer beater sending the game to overtime. We never wavered and got the job done. Now we have to move forward and get back to work to lock up a playoff berth.
Box score
Bandera 69, Navarro 62 (OT)
Navarro 16 14 10 15 7 62 Bandera 14 15 14 12 14 69
JV
The Bandera JV boys basketball team was shorthanded Friday night but came together and battled their way to a 42-36 win over Navarro to get back on track in district play.
The Bulldogs got key contributions from all nine players in uniform and were led in scoring by Jeffry Thomas, who tallied 15 points in the win. Thomas went 6-of-8 from the free throw line in the fourth quarter to help secure the win. Randon Wheeler also finished in double digits, scoring 12 points to help guide the Bulldogs offensively.
The victory moved Bandera to 11-8 on the season and 3-5 in district play with four games to go in the regular season. The Bulldogs will be back in action Tuesday night on the road against Canyon Lake.
Box score
Bandera 42, Navarro 36
Navarro 6 14 7 9 — 36 Bandera 10 9 14 9 — 42
Freshmen
The Bandera freshman boys basketball team trailed for most of Friday night’s game against Navarro before an offensive explosion in the fourth quarter helped the team avenge an earlier loss to the Panthers in a thrilling 44-35 finish.
The Bulldogs’ comeback effort was sparked by a nine-point fourth quarter effort from Logan Pierce, who knocked down a pair of three pointers in the final eight minutes. Overall, Bandera outscored Navarro 21-9 in the final frame to pull ahead and secure the win.
Pierce finished with a team-high 12 points while Evan Bowman had nine and Gavin Garcia had eight. Riley Moran added seven, Brady Trussell had four and James Bower had three. The Bulldogs moved to 9-10 on the season and 4-4 in district play with the win. Bandera will return to action Tuesday night on the road at Canyon Lake.
Box score
Bandera 44, Navarro 35
Navarro 10 5 11 9 — 35 Bandera 7 9 6 21 — 44
Due to weather, all of the games scheduled for Tuesday have been rescheduled for Thursday.