The Woodlands boys Continue Streak; Eliminate College Park

THE WOODLANDS, Texas – The Woodlands High School boys’ basketball team moved one step closer to perfection, well at least in District 14-5A play.

The No. 21 state-ranked Highlanders improved to 11-0 in district play on Friday with a hard-fought 60-52 victory at home over College Park. The Woodlands has now won 21 consecutive games and 28 of 31 overall this season.

But wasn’t easy because College Park was playing for their lives in the postseason race.

“Yeah, they were,” The Woodlands coach Dale Reed said. “Both times we played them they played their best. They just did a great job effort-wise, knocking down shots. There at the end they were having trouble getting it in, but for the most part they played really well.

“Our guys just did enough to make the plays. I thought one of the biggest plays of the game was Rafael Moreno, who is our 12th man, made the basket at the end of the game, that was the biggest one, by just taking it to the hole and finishing.

“That’s what our team has been, 12 guys that when they’re called on they step in and do a job.”

The Highlanders held a 12-7 lead early only to see College Park chip away, closing the gap to 26-22 at halftime and 42-40 after three quarters in front of a packed house.

“What an atmosphere; outstanding crowd from both sides, high intensity, just a lot of fun,” Reed said.

“We started out in our meeting talking about, ‘this is what high school basketball is all about.’ It was like a playoff atmosphere. Our crowd really got behind us, College Park’s crowd really behind them, and it was neat to see from this community how intense that basketball game was.”

The Highlanders have already sewn up the District 14-5A championship and a top seed in the playoffs while College Park was battling for the district’s fourth and final berth. The loss eliminates the Cavaliers (23-12, 5-6) from the postseason since Atascocita (6-6) defeated Conroe Friday to claim that fourth spot.

Jordan Alpha turned in a stellar game for the Highlanders, leading all scorers with 24 points. College Park countered with a balanced attack. Evan Cooper scored 11 points while David Bender and Zach Wright finished with 10 points each.

The Highlanders go for a perfect district season on Tuesday when they visit 0-11 Conroe. College Park plays its final game of the season on Tuesday when they host Lufkin. Both games are scheduled to tip off at 7 p.m.

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