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Photo by Nicole Flowers
January 1, 2025
Bandera boys finish second at Ro-Hawk Invitational
By Prophet Staff
After an extended Christmas break, the Bandera varsity boys basketball team was back in action over the weekend at the 2024 Ro-Hawk Invitational at Randolph High School, and the Bulldogs shook off the rust by finishing 3-1 and claiming second place overall.
Bandera recorded wins over San Antonio Lutheran, Natalia and Blanco while falling to eventual champion Randolph in a tightly contested game Saturday morning. The wins moved the Bulldogs to 16-5 on the season with just two non-district games remaining before the start of District 26-4A play.
“Overall I was proud of how the guys competed this weekend," Bandera Head Coach Brady Keane said. "Coming off a long break, there was bound to be some rust, but we played with great effort and showed no signs of slowing down defensively. We would’ve liked to finish 4-0, but I thought we got a lot out of the tournament and found some things to work on over the next week.”
Bandera opened the tournament with a 69-51 win over Lutheran, overcoming a 37-33 halftime deficit to hold the Mustangs to just 14 points in the second half. Senior Eli Salas posted 25 points, 10 rebounds, seven assists and four steals in the win, while senior Beau Bergfeld added 16 points and 17 rebounds. Junior Anden Tentis-De Grote had eight points and three rebounds, junior Jeffry Thomas had eight points, three rebounds and three assists, junior James Bower had seven points, four rebounds and three assists, and senior Gattlin Winkler had four points and three rebounds.
The Bulldogs went on to defeat Natalia 60-27 Friday afternoon, holding the Mustangs to nine or fewer points in all four quarters. Natalia scored just nine total points in the second half, and Bandera went an impressive 10-of-16 from the 3-point line in the win.
Salas had 19 points, five rebounds and four assists, Thomas had 12 points, six assists and three rebounds, Tentis-De Grote had nine points and six rebounds, sophomore Cooper Franklin had eight points and five rebounds, Bower had four points and four assists, Winkler had four points and two assists and Bergfeld finished with two points and nine rebounds.
“We got off to a really slow start against Lutheran, but I couldn’t be happier with the second half intensity on the defensive end,” Keane said. “Anytime you can hold a team to just 14 points in 16 minutes, you’re going to be in a good position to win. We carried that effort on to the Natalia game, and it was good to see us shoot the ball up to the level we are capable of.”
Bandera opened Saturday with a rematch against Randolph, a team the Bulldogs hung on to beat 45-42 in the second round of the Comfort Tournament earlier this month. Bandera got off to a slow start and trailed by eight at halftime, but flipped things around in the second half to take a six-point lead entering the fourth quarter.
The Ro-Hawks got hot from the 3-point line with less than three minutes to go, though, and were able to hold off a Bandera comeback effort in a 53-48 finish. Salas had 21 points, Thomas added 14 points, and Bergfeld finished with nine points, 10 rebounds and two assists in the loss.
The Bulldogs bounced back nicely in a 38-33 win over Blanco to finish out the tournament, pushing through signs of fatigue to stifle the sharpshooting Panthers from start to finish. Bandera held Blanco scoreless through the entire first quarter, and used a high-intensity defensive effort to overcome a slow offensive game. Thomas led all scorers with 14 points, five rebounds and three assists while Salas added eight points and seven rebounds in the victory.
“The Randolph loss was tough, and it was another back-and-forth physical game just like the first meeting was,” Keane said. “We had our chances to win, and just came up a little bit short. I was impressed with the way we battled back, we just have to clean up a few little details to be able to finish games like that off. To bounce back the way we did, especially defensively, against Blanco was a great way to finish. You could tell we were feeling the effects of a long tournament, but we relied on our defense and that put us in a great position to win.”
Salas and Thomas were named to the All-Tournament Team for their performances through four games. It was the third all-tournament selection for Salas this season, and the second for Thomas.
“Those two guys hardly came off the court, and they gave it everything they had from start to finish,” Keane said. “I was really proud of how they competed, and they really left it all on the floor.”
Bandera is now back at practice before heading to Llano for a road matchup with the Yellow Jackets at 1:30 p.m., Friday. The Bulldogs will then travel to San Marcos on Monday for a neutral site game against La Grange, before opening district play against Fredericksburg at home on Friday, Jan. 10.
The Billies are 15-7 on the year and have won four straight games, building momentum entering the new year.
"We’ve got two more non-district games to fine-tune things before district starts, and those will be important," Keane said. "Fredericksburg is always a great rivalry game for us, and coach Kaman always does a great job preparing his team. We are excited for the challenges to come but are focused on taking things one day at a time. The key for us will be staying consistent and playing to our strengths."
Bandera recorded wins over San Antonio Lutheran, Natalia and Blanco while falling to eventual champion Randolph in a tightly contested game Saturday morning. The wins moved the Bulldogs to 16-5 on the season with just two non-district games remaining before the start of District 26-4A play.
“Overall I was proud of how the guys competed this weekend," Bandera Head Coach Brady Keane said. "Coming off a long break, there was bound to be some rust, but we played with great effort and showed no signs of slowing down defensively. We would’ve liked to finish 4-0, but I thought we got a lot out of the tournament and found some things to work on over the next week.”
Bandera opened the tournament with a 69-51 win over Lutheran, overcoming a 37-33 halftime deficit to hold the Mustangs to just 14 points in the second half. Senior Eli Salas posted 25 points, 10 rebounds, seven assists and four steals in the win, while senior Beau Bergfeld added 16 points and 17 rebounds. Junior Anden Tentis-De Grote had eight points and three rebounds, junior Jeffry Thomas had eight points, three rebounds and three assists, junior James Bower had seven points, four rebounds and three assists, and senior Gattlin Winkler had four points and three rebounds.
The Bulldogs went on to defeat Natalia 60-27 Friday afternoon, holding the Mustangs to nine or fewer points in all four quarters. Natalia scored just nine total points in the second half, and Bandera went an impressive 10-of-16 from the 3-point line in the win.
Salas had 19 points, five rebounds and four assists, Thomas had 12 points, six assists and three rebounds, Tentis-De Grote had nine points and six rebounds, sophomore Cooper Franklin had eight points and five rebounds, Bower had four points and four assists, Winkler had four points and two assists and Bergfeld finished with two points and nine rebounds.
“We got off to a really slow start against Lutheran, but I couldn’t be happier with the second half intensity on the defensive end,” Keane said. “Anytime you can hold a team to just 14 points in 16 minutes, you’re going to be in a good position to win. We carried that effort on to the Natalia game, and it was good to see us shoot the ball up to the level we are capable of.”
Bandera opened Saturday with a rematch against Randolph, a team the Bulldogs hung on to beat 45-42 in the second round of the Comfort Tournament earlier this month. Bandera got off to a slow start and trailed by eight at halftime, but flipped things around in the second half to take a six-point lead entering the fourth quarter.
The Ro-Hawks got hot from the 3-point line with less than three minutes to go, though, and were able to hold off a Bandera comeback effort in a 53-48 finish. Salas had 21 points, Thomas added 14 points, and Bergfeld finished with nine points, 10 rebounds and two assists in the loss.
The Bulldogs bounced back nicely in a 38-33 win over Blanco to finish out the tournament, pushing through signs of fatigue to stifle the sharpshooting Panthers from start to finish. Bandera held Blanco scoreless through the entire first quarter, and used a high-intensity defensive effort to overcome a slow offensive game. Thomas led all scorers with 14 points, five rebounds and three assists while Salas added eight points and seven rebounds in the victory.
“The Randolph loss was tough, and it was another back-and-forth physical game just like the first meeting was,” Keane said. “We had our chances to win, and just came up a little bit short. I was impressed with the way we battled back, we just have to clean up a few little details to be able to finish games like that off. To bounce back the way we did, especially defensively, against Blanco was a great way to finish. You could tell we were feeling the effects of a long tournament, but we relied on our defense and that put us in a great position to win.”
Salas and Thomas were named to the All-Tournament Team for their performances through four games. It was the third all-tournament selection for Salas this season, and the second for Thomas.
“Those two guys hardly came off the court, and they gave it everything they had from start to finish,” Keane said. “I was really proud of how they competed, and they really left it all on the floor.”
Bandera is now back at practice before heading to Llano for a road matchup with the Yellow Jackets at 1:30 p.m., Friday. The Bulldogs will then travel to San Marcos on Monday for a neutral site game against La Grange, before opening district play against Fredericksburg at home on Friday, Jan. 10.
The Billies are 15-7 on the year and have won four straight games, building momentum entering the new year.
"We’ve got two more non-district games to fine-tune things before district starts, and those will be important," Keane said. "Fredericksburg is always a great rivalry game for us, and coach Kaman always does a great job preparing his team. We are excited for the challenges to come but are focused on taking things one day at a time. The key for us will be staying consistent and playing to our strengths."