13-5A Boys Basketball: Pirates notch first district win

Poteet picked up its first district win and vaulted itself right in the thick of the playoff race on Friday with a hard-fought 42-40 win over Royse City.

The game was tight from start to finish.

The teams were tied at 14-14 at halftime and the Bulldogs (0-3) actually edged out to a four-point lead going to the fourth quarter.

But the Pirates (1-2) were able to pick it up from there, outscoring Royse City 15-9 in the final frame to claim the victory.

Charles Bradley and King Moore each had 10 points to lead Poteet, while Derrick Martin and Jaylond Police added seven. Michael Alphin tallied 11 points and Donovan Alexander had 10 for the Bulldogs.

West Mesquite saw its run of tough luck continue, as it fell to 0-3 with a hard-fought 70-66 loss to district-leading North Forney, who improved to 4-0 with that win, coupled with a 48-47 victory over Royse City on Saturday.

Highland Park (3-0) is a half-game back of the Falcons as it posted a 57-45 win over Crandall (3-1) on Friday.

The Scots actually trailed by eight at the end of the first quarter. Highland Park responded, though, trimming the deficit to one by halftime and outscoring Crandall 26-13 in the second half.

Jack Pease led a trio of Scots in double figures with 14 points, followed by Worthey Wiles with 12 and Coleson Messer with 11. Jayson Orto recorded 13 points, Je’Shun Brannon had 12 and Beau Bragg chipped in with 11 for Crandall.