Rivals go at it: Wolverines grab district win against Southwest
A couple of crosstown rivals clashed in a district matchup as the PSJA Memorial Wolverines took on the PSJA Southwest Javelinas at their house Tuesday.
Despite the full crowd on the Javelinas' side — Memorial took the decisive win, 61-45, which is the team’s first district dub in 31-5A for the season. This is the second time these teams have met this season, with Memorial getting the better hand over Southwest the first time around.
The Javelinas started off with great intensity and found themselves up 5-0 as Southwest’s Justin Salazar hit a three and a lay-in to bring momentum to the home squad. A lone free throw by Eric Contreras, with a three from Memorial’s Christian Torres from the right wing brought it to 7-6 to mend the run by Southwest.
Salazar dialed in from downtown, with Rudy Rodriguez getting the lay up to build a cushion of 12-6. On the next trip downcourt, Christian Chavez — junior for Memorial — got himself on the boards with a mid-range jumper on the right-hand side.
A bit of back and forth between the teams was similar to a tug-of-war as each team on paper and in game looked like an even match. Contreras and Chavez though had themselves a needed 5-0 run as both hit a three and lay in, respectively, for the 19-17 halftime lead.
The steam from the first half was still there at the start of the second half as both squads started with rivaled baskets. Southwest picked up the tenacity with a full-court press to shake up Memorial a tad. However, the Wolverines kept their cool as Torres drove in and handed it off to Aiden Swanson for a lay in with about six minutes left in the third. After that, Chavez got himself a steal and the euro-step lay in earned them a 27-20 lead.
Southwest’s Rodriguez and Salazar traded some baskets with the Wolverines as they brought the deficit within five.
However, three is the magic number as the third quarter swung in Memorial’s favor as Contreras was the needed spark for the away team. The point guard exploded for 12 points in the third — most coming off putbacks and lay ins when the Wolverines started with their own press.
It was 41-30 at the end of the third — with the Wolverines putting up 22 points in the quarter compared to Southwest’s 13.
Once Memorial started looking forward, they didn’t look back as at one moment, the Wolverines found themselves with a comfortable 21-point spread. Southwest’s Salazar had himself a great quarter with 7 points but it wasn’t enough to overcome the deficit. He had 19 points on the night, the most for his team.
On the flip side, Memorial’s Chavez followed suit and had 11 points in the quarter to keep the lead in the Wolverines’ hands. He had 17 on the night.
“It was exciting to see both of these great teams, great (Southwest) coach over there, come out and give a competitive game,” PSJA Memorial Head Coach Kerry Wheatfall said.
Wheatfall said that week in and week out he teaches his players to "keep playing ball" despite mistakes that happen in practice or in games.
“What I instill in the guys, is like, you’re going to mess up. Don’t put your head down, pick your head up and just keep playing ball,” the coach said. “Because you’re going to get that chance again later in the game. So, just keep going and keep doing what you’re supposed to do. Stay focused.”
Contreras, sophomore point guard for PSJA Memorial, said that he and the team were confident coming into this game. The underclassman had a team high 22 points, along with 13 rebounds — earning him a double-double.
“I mean it was a tough battle in the first half,” the guard said. “Second half, we came out, we did what we were taught and we just executed the rest of the game. Our coach had a lot of faith in us. We knew he wasn’t going to give up on us until the buzzer ended. That really just sparked us (and motivated us to) keep pushing.”
The Wolverines travel back home to take on Sharyland Pioneer on Friday. For Southwest, they have an away game against the PSJA North Raiders.