First blood at the Westlake Holiday Classic has been spilled. A&M Consolidated came into Westlake and beat the home team, 64-58. Westlake trailed for most of the game, taking their first lead 39-38 near the end of the 3rd quarter. The Chaps clawed back in in after being down by 10. They took advantage of 2012 PG Alex Caruso's foul trouble. Consolidated is a different team with him out of the game. It was nip and tuck the remainder of the game until a questionable tech swung the final momentum the Tigers way.
2012 PG 6'5" Alex Caruso of A&M Consolidated, shown below with the Texas D1 Ambassadors
Caruso is indeed establishing himself as the real deal. At 6'5" he has superior court vision. His improvement since the summer has been dramatic and you can really see that the game has slowed down for him. He led the way with 20 points, 5 assists, 4 steals & 5 rebounds. He's climbing up the charts from mid major to a serious candidate for high major looks this coming summer season. 2013 P 6'5" Jimmie Gilbert had 5 points & snagged 12 rebounds in the win. Senior KeeKee Williams hit some timely shots and finished with 14.
Austin Westlake was led by 2013 PG Will Morse with 19 points. He also did nice job of taking care of the ball. 2012 P 6'6" Drew Wikelius had 13 points and 8 rebounds. Missed free throws down the stretch really hurt Westlake's chances. 2012 G R.J. Rowan added 15 for the Chaps.
This one was a runaway as Senior D.J. Feitl led a balanced Socorro attack with 12 points. Senior Enrique Jimenez had 13 for a game, but overmatched El Paso Socorr squad.
Pflugerville El Paso Montwood
It's easy to see why Montwood rules El Paso basketball on a regular basis and is always a threat to go deep into the State playoffs. They're well coached by Tony Harper and the players understand their roles. However, there is no 6'7" Roman Martinez (New Mexico) this time around so they are undersized. It all came down to not being able to handle Pflugerville's guards (but then again not many teams can).
Deon Mitchell (Northern Iowa) had a smooth 20 while also grabbing 5 boards & 5 steals. 2011 Jamaal Shabazz had 15 points & 5 boards, while 2011 Darrian Dempsey also added 11 for The Ville. Montwood consistently scored from the free throw line as Senior Robert Lopez dropped 25 to lead all scorers. The majority of them came from the same spot on the floor, off the same cuts. Senior Gabriel Lincon had the hot hand early for Montwood from the perimeter as he scored 16 before Pflugerville started to deny him the ball.
Deon Mitchell, seen below signing with Northern Iowa, was cashing the checks for Pflugerville as he went to work today as he dropped 20 on El Paso Montwood.
Duncanville 75 Westbury 40
Duncanville began to dominate halfway through the first quarter and as it progressed the game became a track meet. With 2011 P Luke Mergerson controlling the boards (6 points & 12 rebounds) and 2011 W 6'7" Devane Carter finishing on the break (3 dunks in a 40 second span) on his way to 15 points, they were too much for Westbury.
Duncanville's 2011 Luke Mergerson (left) and 2011 Davene Carter (right) were too much for Houston Westbury to handle.
Austin Westlake 60 El Paso Socorro 38
Westlake played an uninspired first half with their best play being a half court 3 pointer by Will Morse to end the 1st quarter. After trailing 18-13 at the half, Coach Eliis must have gotten in their ears pretty well as Westlake came out with guns blazing and scored 30 in the 3rd period to take command 43-25. The entire Chaps roster contributed something to the effort.
2012 G R.J. Rowan had an inspired 2nd half as he scored 17 points, 2013 G Vince Deblasio added 8 points and fellow soph Will morse had 8 points and 6 assists. For Socorro, Seniors Kyle Brito had 11 and Enrique Jimenez added 10.
Pflugerville 71 Houston Westbury 51
This one was never in doubt from the opening whistle. At the half, with Pflugerville subbing liberally they go to the locker room with a 36-17 lead. Pflugerville rested the majority of it's starters from the midpoint of the 3rd. Deon Mitchell led with 16 points, getting to the goal whenever he wanted. Cameron Blue & Jamal Shabazz both had 6 boards.
2012 G Chris Hynes dropped 16 for Westbury. Their best player was 2013 F Donivan Jones who had 16 points & 7 boards.
