RANDOLPH AIR FORCE BASE, Texas –
The District 27-AA champion Randolph High School Ro-Hawks boys' basketball team beat Hempstead 82-67 in Gonzales during the second round of the University Interscholastic League Region 4 Feb. 27 and beat Poth 49-47 in the third round Wednesday night.
Tonight at 8 p.m. in the Seguin High School gymnasium, in the Region 4 state-semi-finals,the Ro-Hawks take on the winner of the Natalia vs. Hitchcock game played yesterday.
The Ro-Hawks' are currently 11-1 in their district, with a 30-2 overall record--the best in the school's history.
Coach Tim Gendron said in their last game, the Poth players "had never put it on us like that."
That's because Poth was ahead 14-8 at the first quarter's end and 35-22 at the first half's end.
"They were hitting on all cylinders," Gendron noted. "We were just trying to get to halftime."
During halftime, Coach Gendron told his players to come out and defend hard.
"We told our kids to chip away at Poth's lead," he said. "And they didn't get down. They didn't panic. They kept their composure."
Gendron singled out senior guard Kyle McNally, who led Ro-Hawk's scoring with 17 points, for spearheading a defense which disrupted Poth's offense during the second half.
"We kept clawing away from them and took the lead," Gendron said.
Finally, with the game tied 47-47 and five seconds left until the contest's end, senior forward Mark Hopkins came through with two points to win the game for the Ro-Hawks.
"He hit a shot over three guys in the middle of the paint to score. We had wanted to get the ball in his hands," Gendron added.
Gendron also said like Poth, the Hempstead team challenged the Ro-Hawks.
"Hempstead has very athletic kids. They don't let you slow down," he added.
The constant fouling by Hempstead players against his players was noted by the Ro-Hawks coach.
"They were aggressive," Gendron said of the opposition. "They kept fouling. We took 48 foul shots and made 30 of them -- which is a little below average for us."
Apparently, though, the Ro-Hawks didn't get intimidated. Gendron singled out Hopkins for scoring 35 points and sophomore Jacorian Duffield for scoring 26 points.
"Both of them were relentless in attacking the basket," Gendron noted.
Gendron mentioned the Ro-Hawks defensive efforts paid off in the second half. He said
his team did a better job of rebounding than they did during the first half. They also kept Hempstead from taking shots in the paint.
"That was the difference in the game's second half," He added. "We kept going to the free-throw line and kept them from getting second and third shots. "
Gendron said the momentum killer for the Ro-Hawks against Hempstead was a pivotal third-quarter play made by Duffield. He tied the game was 35-35 after making a three-point shot. Then, he was quickly fouled and made a free throw.
"Then we got a full-court press going and Hopkins got a steal and made a basket," Gendron added.
Gendron said the game was basically a tight one for nearly three quarters until Duffield tied it up and got the free throw. Then came Hopkins' big steal and score.
"That put some distance between us," the coach commented. "Those two plays combined for a big six points early in the third quarter."
After that, the fourth quarter quickly came. And they were able to pull away, he said.
Win or lose against Hempstead and Poth, the Ro-Hawks coach mentioned one of the benefits of his job.
"They've been a great group of kids to work with," Mr. Gendron concluded. "It's been a blessing coming to work with them every day."