Clear Lake Falconhoops

Clear Lake 70 - Dulles 58

In what might be a preview of the first round of the playoffs, Clear Lake met their adjacent district rival 23-5A Dulles Vikings Tuesday night in the Bill Krueger Field House. Teams from our district (24-5A) face District 23-5A teams in the playoffs. But this year, for the first time, the Fort Bend District has been renumbered to be District 23-5A, adjacent to 24-5A. For many years in the past the adjacent district was the Deer Park/Northshore/LaPorte district which is now District 22 5A.

Another change the UIL made starting this season is the number of teams (for 5A and 4A) advancing to the playoffs – four instead of three as in the past. This means the District winners will not get a bye in the first round. Instead, the district winners will face the fourth place team from the adjacent district. For example, if Clear Lake wins the district crown, they would face fourth place team (currently Hightower) from District 23 5A. If Clear Lake comes in second in the district, they would face the third place team from 23 5A, currently either Dulles or Fort Bend Marshall (fyi: Marshall has already defeated Clear Lake twice this season).

In the game tonight the two teams could not have been better matched if it had been scripted in a movie. Entering tonight’s contest the teams had almost identical records (Clear Lake 25-6 and Dulles 25-5). Note also that the Dulles Vikings have the third best defensive team in the region allowing only 49.8 points per game (Offensively, they are impressive as well). Combine that with the Falcons having the third best offense in the region with an average of 69.2 ppg. and you have the makings of a great high school basketball game.

Physically the two teams also matched up well. Dulles is not a tall team but they are a very quick team. Lake’s Jimmy Witten, at 6’ 5” was the closest thing to a dominant big man in the game. Witten, whose play could only be described with words like outstanding and inspirational, did dominate in the first quarter before Dulles decided to double team him in the second half. It had only minimal effect though as Witten, ever the warrior, was not to be denied. In three quarters he had 15 points and 9 rebounds before he fouled out of the game with 1:26 remaining in the final period. By the way, Witten received a standing ovation from many of the crowd as he left the court upon fouling out.

Dulles was missing one of their starters, junior guard Abel Galliguez, who was out due to illness. His identical twin brother, #23 Thomas, gave Lake fits all through the game. Perhaps Dulles would have been more fun to watch and would have played a closer game if the Galliguez brothers had both been there. Almost hard to imagine.

The game was close in the first half, tied four times in the first quarter and two times in the second quarter. Lake was up by only 3 points at half time. Jimmy Witten kept Lake in the game in the first quarter scoring 8 of Lake’s 14 points. I believe Jimmy did not play in the second quarter. Due to excellent play from reserves Andrew Gorie and Cody Kinsey, Jimmy got some well deserved rest and was saved for later in the game. In the second quarter Kendrell Thompson kept Lake alive scoring 5 of the 10 points on the board. Thompson was slow finding his spot with 2 of 6 shooting from the field in the first half but in the second half he was a perfect 5 for 5 from the field (Kendrell led all scorers with 21 points). Armie Lewis, also working to overcome the intense defensive pressure in the first half, scored 14 of his fifteen points in the second half after he made some adjustments. Ditto for RJ Turner. RJ scored 10 of his 12 points in the second half. How frustrating it must be for an outstanding coach like Dulles’s Mike Carrabine, to make the adjustments necessary at half time to regain control of the game from the opponent only to watch the multitalented Clear Lake squad double their shooting proficiency in the second half.

In the second half both teams stepped it up. Lake’s defense was at times superb but often spotty and sporadic. The Falcons complete offense and key rebounding allowed them to really gain control of the game. With 4:44 remaining in the third quarter Lake increased their lead to 10 points, 33-23. Dulles scored one basket in just over three minutes. Lake increased their lead to 15 (40-25) and then Armie really went to work on them. Lewis scored the next 12 Lake points late in the third quarter and early in the fourth quarter. But Lake did not shut down Dulles’s offense so Dulles was not out of it yet. After three quarters it was 45-31 with Lake still in control and dictating the tempo of the game. Lake’s largest lead was 65-47 but Dulles uncorked their three point shooting for some quick scoring to let the Lake fans know it might be too soon to relax.

One of the key elements to a “complete” offense and certainly a major component to Lake’s victory is terrific free throw shooting. Dulles’s defense was forceful, aggressive, almost brutal, in-your-face defense from a squad of cat-quick, hard working, excellent basketball players who were fun to watch. But that kind of pressure can have a price. Too much fouling sometimes. In the second half Lake was shooting 1 and 1 free throws with considerable time left in the third quarter. Lake was 13 of 15 from the free throw line in the second half after going 6 of 7 in the first half. 19 of 22 free throw shooting is much more than respectable. It’s tough to beat a team as versatile as Clear Lake who can shoot the lights out and nail the coffin closed with outstanding free throw shooting as well.

What a great match-up! The game was everything it should have been. Team basketball played the way basketball should be played - defense so aggressive by the Vikings that many in the crowd did not understand why the refs were not calling more fouls. Viking defense and Clear Lake offense running like well oiled machines most of the time. Masterful coaching from both teams. It was impressive high school basketball from both teams on both ends of the court. Clear Lake scored 46 points in the second half against a fine team that allows on 49.6 points in a game. Doubtful if anybody's twin brother could completely stop that! 

FYI: If Clear Lake defeats Pearland in the Pearland gym on February 6 (and they most definitely will), the two teams will be tied for first place in the district. For an explanation of how ties are broken in District 24 5A, see the GENERAL INFORMATION PAGE.

There are 25 action shots of this game in the ALBUMS Section.

Individual Scoring:
Kendrell Thompson 21, Armie Lewis 15, Jimmy Witten 15, RJ Turner 12,
Anthony Bilcic 3, Fulton Brisco 2, Cody Kinsey 2