Jesuit closed the first round of district play with a 3-4 record, scoring a pair of critical wins last week to head into the home stretch of the year in a tie for the final playoff spot in District 9-6A. The Rangers, behind a career-high 30 points from senior Darryl Brown, upended Plano West, 64-47, on Tuesday before holding off a late McKinney Boyd rally to secure a 56-52 road win on Friday evening.

vs. McKinney Boyd – Jan. 24, 2020

Jesuit shot 52.9 percent from the floor as a balanced scoring effort saw seven players score five points or more in a close-fought, 56-52 win over Boyd on Friday. Brown led the charge with 12 points and eight rebounds while junior Cal Linn added 11 points of 4-of-7 shooting, a clip which included two rebounds. Perryman finished the game with eight points, seven assists and six rebounds while juniors Will Cordle, Conor Moore and Camden Roy scored six points each.  

A 7-0, game-opening run put the Rangers ahead of the Broncos early in the first quarter. Boyd responded by scoring 10 points in the quarter, but the Rangers were able to hold off the Broncos to take a five-point lead into the second. Both teams struggled from the floor in the second, as the Rangers were held to a 2-of-6 clip while Boyd shot 2-of-4, sending the game into halftime with Jesuit holding a five-point lead after eight combined points were scored between the two teams in the second quarter. 

Jesuit used a three-point swing to take a nine-point lead with 6:45 remaining in the third, but seven unanswered points by Boyd cut the Jesuit lead down to two points. Back-to-back layups by junior Camden Roy and Perryman spotted the Rangers a two-possession lead, starting a 12-5 run that gave Jesuit a nine-point lead with 2:20 remaining in the quarter. Cordle found Moore for a quarter-ending layup, sending Jesuit into the fourth quarter with a 38-33 lead.

Cordle hit a three-pointer of his own for Jesuit's first basket of the fourth, and the Jesuit defense held Boyd without a field goal over the first 3:55 of the quarter. Jesuit led by 10 with 1:52 left, but Boyd pieced together a determined rally, using a 11-3 run to cut the Jesuit lead to three points. Boyd forced a turnover and a foul to go to the line with seven seconds left. The Broncos hit the first free throw but were unable to get the rebound off the second miss. Hatzmann converted both free throws after regaining possession to clinch the win.

 

vs. Plano West – Jan. 21, 2020 

Brown finished Tuesday's game shooting 11-of-17 from the floor and 7-of-10 from the free-throw line, adding 14 rebounds and two blocks. Junior Gavin Perryman scored 22 points, hit four three-pointers and secured six assists while junior Shane Hatzmann scored five points.  

Junior Camden Roy added four assists as junior Conor Moore scored four points with five rebounds. Jesuit pieced together one of its best shooting performances of the season, shooting 52.2 percent from the floor. The Rangers scored 28 points in the paint, 12 points off of 10 offensive rebounds and 12 points off of 12 turnovers. 

In the first quarter, Jesuit scored seven unanswered points to take an early, three-possession lead. Plano West would respond with 15 points over the span of the first quarter, but Jesuit kept the lead intact as a three-pointer by Hatzmann sent the Rangers into the second quarter with a four-point lead.

Plano West took its first lead of the game with 3:51 left in the second quarter, but the Rangers regained momentum with nine unanswered points to finish the half and took a 28-22 lead into halftime. The run continued through the third quarter as Jesuit built a 13-point lead with 4:51 remaining, capping a 17-2 run that gave the Rangers a big lead in front of a passionate home crowd.

Three-pointers by Perryman and junior Will Cordle kept Plano West out of striking distance, sending Jesuit into the fourth quarter with a 46-32 lead. The Ranger defense took over in the fourth, holding Plano West without a field goal over the first three minutes of the quarter while Jesuit took a dominant, 19-point lead. Brown scored eight points over the final six minutes to clinch the win as the Ranger defense held firm once again, shutting out the Wolves over the final 1:38 of the fourth quarter.

Up Next 

Jesuit will return to Walsh Gym on Tuesday to begin the second round of district play. The Rangers will battle Prosper on Tuesday before traveling to Allen H.S. to battle the Eagles on Friday.