BALLINGER, TX — The Ballinger Bearcats had a chance to solidify their hold on the fourth and final playoff spot Wednesday against Miles.
And they played like it from the opening tip.
Ballinger sprinted out to a 19-2 lead by the end of the first quarter and cruised from there to a 66-42 win.
Bearcats head coach Jeff Holland said he couldn’t have asked for a better start from his team.
“We stressed coming out from the jump, and we did a heck of a job tonight,” Holland said. “We just came out firing and locking in on defense. 19-2, it’s hard to beat that.”
The game also featured junior Hunter Kresta scoring his 1,000th career point.
Kresta achieved the milestone in an outstanding all-around performance as he finished with 23 points, nine rebounds, four assists, three steals and three blocks.
“Hunter’s started pretty much every game since he was a freshman, so he’s been one of our guys for three years now,” Holland said. “It’s a proud moment to see him reach that milestone, and he’s going to hit 1,000 rebounds next year, and that’s something special. He’s a special kid. He’s a yes-sir, no-sir kid. You couldn’t ask for a better kid to have on your team.”
Sophomore Marcus Cook was also a playmaker for the Bearcats with 15 points, five rebounds, four assists and a team-leading six steals.
Coleman King had 14 points and three steals.
Miles was led by Caleb Guzman, who knocked down five 3-pointers and finished with 23 points, along with six rebounds and four steals.
After Ballinger’s big first quarter, Miles actually put together an impressive performance in the second quarter to close the gap.
The Bulldogs trimmed the deficit to 27-16 before going into halftime down 30-16.
After that, however, Ballinger turned on the afterburners and put the game away by flying out to a 15-4 run to open the third quarter.
The Bearcats led 53-28 heading into the fourth quarter.
Ballinger improved to 15-11 overall and 4-3 in District 8-2A, while Miles fell to 3-18, 1-6.
The Bearcats have a key game Friday at fifth-place Winters that could go a long way toward locking up a playoff spot. Ballinger won the first meeting with Winters, 68-55.
“We’re in a good spot. We’ve got to win Friday to kind of sure it up some,” Holland said. “We’ve been in all but two of these district games, and we’ve got a shot coming into the second round of district to right some wrongs and get back on track, so I feel good about where we’re at.”
Miles will be off Friday before hosting Winters on Tuesday in its next game.
Ballinger 66, Miles 42
Miles 2 14 12 14 — 42
Ballinger 19 11 23 13 — 66
MILES — Xavier Castaneda 4, Dalton Fischer 5, Caleb Guzman 23, Logan Gonzalez 4, Austin Matheny 6.
BALLINGER — Caiden Villarreal 4, Marcus Cook 15, Coleman King 14, Dylan Page 5, Kaiden Medrano 3, Manny Gonzales 2, Hunter Kresta 23.
Hunter Kresta and his teammates celebrate the Ballinger junior scoring his 1,000th career point Wednesday against Miles.
Miles' Caleb Guzman knocks down one of his five 3-pointers Wednesday against Ballinger.
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