Clear Lake Falconhoops

Clear Lake 77- Dulles 67

For the second time this season the Clear Lake Falcons faced the Dulles Vikings but this time it was not just to fill in an open date during district play. This time it was in the Bi-district round of the Region III playoffs. In the first round game exactly three weeks ago Clear Lake slightly dominated in the second half and won by 12. Perhaps that gave the Falcons a false sense of security and perhaps it motivated the Vikings to play even more aggressively when the chips were on the line. Whatever the reason, when the ball game started the Vikings came to play and the Falcons came to watch.

In the first quarter the Clear Lake crowd observed in stunned disbelief as Dulles scored basket after basket while Clear Lake seemed a bit befuddled on both ends of the court. Dulles was obviously well prepared and had made adjustments from the previous loss to avoid a repeat. Clear Lake was well prepared for Dulles but ineffective in preventing the same Dulles plays from scoring in close in the paint and inept in putting the ball through the hoop when they did get a shot off. The quick and aggressive guard play initially overwhelmed the Falcons.

Half way through the first quarter it was 2-11, Lake down by 9 but it would get worse. Dulles scored two more baskets to make it 2-15 so Lake was forced to call their second timeout. The Falcons would next score on a free throw by Kendrell Thompson with barely a minute remaining in the quarter. With 32 seconds remaining RJ Turner made two free throws to make it 5-17. Armie Lewis got fouled on a last second three point attempt as the quarter drew to a close. Lewis sank all three free throws to close the quarter 8-19. Six of seven from the charity stripe kept Clear Lake alive in the quarter. RJ had the only basket from the floor in the quarter as Lake went 1 of 8 from the field.

Dulles is a very quick team with outstanding junior guards but not much height on the team. They are excellent outside shooters. They are also one of the most physical teams in the region at the guard position. Their guards, but not just their guards, fouled a lot but were clever enough to not get called for many of the fouls they committed. This very aggressive guard play by Dulles’s identical twin brothers was more than a nuisance for Clear Lake throughout the game. It took awhile for Lake’s players to adjust to the quickness and the more assertive play.

Late in the first quarter and in the second quarter defensive speed and hustle were added to the Lake mix in the form of Anthony Bilcic as Lake started becoming more effective on defense in the second quarter. Two quick baskets by Lake forced a Dulles timeout. Dulles then countered with five unanswered points to bring it to 14-24, Lake down by 10. Foul trouble started looming for Armie Lewis in the second quarter but outstanding play by everyone kicked in as Lake finally went to work. Lewis would get called for the same fouls that the Dulles guards would commit but not get called for early in the game. Two free throws each by Fulton Brisco and Jimmy Witten brought the score to 20-26 with 4:06 remaining in the second quarter. Then Kendrell nailed his first three of the game to make it 23-26.

Reserve play from the bench was outstanding in this game. Anthony Bilcic, Christian Enriquez, Andrew Gorie, and Cody Kinsey each made a noticeable difference every time they were in the game. That kind of play off the bench makes the difference between a really good team and a great team.

On this squad any player can carry the load. When Armie or RJ or Kendrell are not hot, somebody else is. That is another differentiator between good and great, the variability and versatility of the offense. Reserve Post Andrew Gorie had two successive baskets, a rebound, and a steal in a span of 60 seconds to put Lake ahead 29-28 for our first lead of the contest with 1:56 left in the first half. After that, the lead changed for the third time when Kendrell Thompson nailed a timely, high arching three pointer. Thompson was 3 for 3 from three point land in the quarter. Fulton Brisco was also a perfect 3 for 3 from the field plus two free throws in the quarter as Clear Lake demonstrated the explosive, well rounded offense that explains why the Houston Chronicle projected a regional final between Clear Lake and Kingwood.

In the second quarter Clear Lake dazzled the crowd with a 30 point performance to put Lake ahead 38-33. 11 of 13 shooting from the field and a perfect 5 for 5 from the free throw line from a team that had scored only one basket from the field in the first quarter. Talk about a turnaround! WOW!

In the first 90 seconds of the third quarter two successive baskets by Fulton and two baskets by Jimmy Witten made it 46-38 and forced another Dulles time out. Kendrell nailed a trey and a free throw to make it 50-38 with 5:10 remaining in the quarter. Two free throws by RJ, who went 7 of 9 from the line, made it 52-40. With 90 seconds left in the third period Dulles closed the gap to 6, 56-50. A basket by RJ with a minute remaining made it 58-50. Two more free throws by RJ closed the quarter at 60-52.

In the third quarter the Falcons only scored 22 points as they continued to impress the crowd. Only 22 points! That’s 88 points a game. By the end of the third quarter Lake had made 16 free throws in a row.

Clear Lake scored 7 points in the final period before Dulles scored. Confident of their outside shooting, Dulles went into desperation three point shooting too early (at the beginning of the quarter) and very good defense by Lake stymied their strategy. Kendrell hit a three to make it 67-52, Lake’s largest lead in the game. After a Dulles trey Jimmy made a basket and a free throw to keep the lead at 15, 70-55 with 5:38 remaining in the game. Clear Lake played determined, purposeful offense and better defense after the first quarter but Dulles continued to hang in with Lake maintaining their lead. Lake did not go to their slow down offense until the last two minutes of the game and Dulles narrowed the gap from 15 to 10 but it was just too steep a hill for the Vikings to climb.

The officiating was not bad in the first half. It was noticeably bad in the second half.

In his tenth year as the head varsity coach, this team has just given Coach Lynn McDonald his first 30 win season as a varsity coach. Maybe that's why he has a coffee mug with their picture on it. When this year's team is sparkling like they often do, his perfect 36-0 JV season just over a decade ago might seem like a distant memory.

Despite the cloud of a sporadic, often ineffective Lake defense looming over some of the Lake players more than others, we know this team is special. We just don’t know yet how special they are. When you combine some masterful coaching with talented boys doing what they are trained to do, it is a spectacle worth driving to Austin to watch.

On Saturday Clear Lake will play the winner of the Port Arthur Memorial - Dobie Game which will be played Thursday night at Barbers Hill at 7:30. The winner is likely to be P. A.  Memorial.

Photos for this Clear Lake game can be found at http://picasaweb.google.com/falconhoops after noon Friday.

Individual Scoring:
Kendrell Thompson 22 (6 of 9), Fulton Brisco 16, RJ Turner 15 (7 assists), Jimmy Witten 11 (4 for 4, 9 rebounds),
Andrew Gorie 6, Armie Lewis 4, Cody Kinsey 3 (6 assists)

FALCON STATS	FG made	FG attempts	%
2's	20	33	60.6%
3's	5	10	50.0%
free throws	22	27	81.5%

SCORE BY QUARTER	1	2	3	4
Clear Lake	8	38	60	77
Dulles	19	33	52	67

LINESCORE	1	2	3	4	Final
Clear Lake	8	30	22	17	77
Dulles	19	14	19	15	67

REBOUNDS	LAKE	THEM
Offensive	5	8
Defensive	22	18

Clear Lake 58 - La Porte 43

First Quarter
Everything started off right for the Falcons when Jimmy Witten won the tip-off and Kendrell Thompson nailed a three pointer for the first shot of the game. Looked like it would be a good night for the Falcons. The first quarter was close as Lake took the lead but La Porte kept surging back with their strong inside play. Clear Lake played their game - disciplined, methodical offense and good to very good defense most of the time. As they had throughout the season, Lake pressured the ball often as did La Porte. Lake was calm under pressure and was not bothered by La Porte’s defense. La Porte did seem to be just a little bothered by Lake’s defensive pressure at times. The game was tied at 7 at the 4:42 mark in the first quarter and again at the 2:05 mark when it was knotted at 13. Five of La Porte’s points came off free throws in the quarter. With 27 seconds remaining in the first quarter, Kendrell passed to Armie Lewis slightly left of the top of the key and Lewis calmly nailed a trey to put Lake up 16-15 at the end of the quarter. Armie, on his way to a game high 23 points, had a perfect 3 for 3 for 7 points in the first period. This was Armie's second highest point output of his high school career. Lewis's career high was 26 against Dobie on December 16, 2006.

Second Quarter
Halfway through the second quarter it was 23-15, Lake up by 8 before La Porte came back to make it 23-20. Two timely free throws by RJ Turner made it 25-20. With two minutes remaining in the first half a basket by La Porte made it 25-22. Excellent ball movement by the Falcons throughout the half kept the La Porte defense busy. As the half closed Kendrell nailed a signature trey to make it 28-22. A very good half for the Falcons as they played purposeful, relaxed, and in control. Eight of La Porte’s points in the half came off free throws (four for Lake).

Third Quarter
At the start of the second half RJ drove across the baseline from left to right and found Fulton Brisco for the first score in the half. Lake went up by 10 points when Fulton scored on a put-back at the 6:36 point in the quarter. Brisco, “the silent assassin”, was the second leading scorer on the team as once again his presence in the game was a major factor. The Falcons have developed multiple plays to favor Brisco and his pinpoint shooting while the defense is busy concentrating on Armie, RJ, Kendrell, and Jimmy. It’s almost like he is invisible at times as the Falcons lull the defense into thinking they are okay then rifle the ball in to Fulton for an isolated, quick bucket. Sorry for the digression. After two baskets by La Porte it was 32-26 when Kendrell nailed another trey at the 4:35 mark (Kendrell hit one three pointer in each of the first three quarters). At the 3:32 mark, RJ in-bounded the ball to Armie on the left wing for a quick three to make it 38-26, Lake by 12. At the 3 minute mark RJ fed Jimmy underneath for a tough underhanded layup to make it 40-28. As the quarter drew to a close Lake had possession of the ball in the last minute and ran the clock down for the last shot. With just under 4 seconds remaining a three pointer by Kendrell was off the mark and the ball rolled toward the far side line headed out of bounds. Armie picked the ball up and spun around. Would he have enough time to get a shot off? He fired from three point land and it was nothing but net as the buzzer sounded. Lake’s lead was extended to 13, 43-30. Sometimes things are just meant to be (Check out the Video on the photo web site).

Fourth Quarter
In the final period La Porte knew they would have to start jacking it up from outside if they were to get back in the game. A two and a three gave them five quick points but then Anthony Bilcic quickly countered with one of his classic treys from the wing to make it 46-35. He sent the message “we will trade three’s with you all night”. La Porte did an excellent job of managing the clock in the final period as their young team struggled to come from behind (La Porte has three freshmen on their varsity squad). Late in the game some of the shots from La Porte’s freshman phenom Drew Parker would not find their mark so their strategy was not effective. On top of that, La Porte’s freshman post man, #42 Randy Collins, fouled out with 5:19 remaining in the game. After Anthony’s lone basket, a string of Lake free throws, 3 by RJ and 5 of 6 by Armie brought the score to 54-43 as Clear Lake managed the clock and kept control of the game. In some previous games Lake may have been slow to start their slow down game to manage the clock and maintain their lead but not in this one. With 4:47 remaining Lake went into their slow down game. All of Armie’s free throws in the fourth quarter came in the last two minutes of the contest. The final score was 58-43.

Observations
Clear Lake had a good game but not one of their outstanding games. With the exception of Armie Lewis’s 23 points, the stats say Lake missed over 1/3 of their free throws and almost all their stats were below their averages (for example, only 3 steals compared to an average of 11.7). Part of that is because their stats have been impressive this season (especially their free throw shooting). Something not shown by the stats is the many great, great passes made by this squad in this outing and the consistently outstanding ball movement. See the videos for numerous examples.

Regardless of stats, Lake played well enough to win and they hit their free throws down the stretch (10 of 13 in the fourth quarter). The Falcons have some even better games left in them and now it is time to dig down and get them.

Regional Semifinals
There will be two games Friday night at the Campbell Center. It all comes down to Hastings, Clear Lake, Madison, and Kingwood in Region III 5A. Due to an ineligible player on the Nimitz team, a previous win over Hastings, 74-72, was nullified and Hastings advanced to defeat Cy Falls (84-61). Hastings will face Clear Lake Friday in the FIRST game of the regional semifinals. Madison upset Aldine (87-73) and will face Kingwood, who defeated Elkins tonight (48-35), in the second Friday semifinal game. Aldine finishes the season with a 30-2 record but will not appear in the regional semifinals. You never know.

There will be many fans at the Campbell Center who are not following any of the schools there. This means there will be a crowd. Although the arena holds around 4500, you should get there early.Since Lake plays the first game you will not have trouble getting a seat but good seats will require early arrival.

State Tournament
For those planning to go to Austin if Lake should win the region, do not wait until the Regional final is played on Saturday to make hotel reservations. There will be fans from twenty schools coming from all over the state. There are many fine hotels to choose from but if you wait you will regret it. Book your rooms now. You can always cancel. If you do not book now, you will have a very difficult time getting a room. Rooms will be at a premium. There are over 100,000 additional people in town that weekend. That is a 20% influx overnight.

Videos of many of the outstanding Falcon plays during the game can be viewed on the photo web site after 1 p.m. Wednesday.

Photos for this game will appear on the photo site after 2 p.m. on Wednesday, Feb. 28. Double click on any photo (on the HOME Page or in a FALCON FLASHES article) or click on the article TITLE above to go to the photo site. The photo site does not come up in a separate browser.

Individual Scoring:
Armie Lewis 23, Fulton Brisco 10,
RJ Turner 9, Kendrell Thompson 9, Jimmy Witten 4, Anthony Bilcic 3

FALCON STATS	FG made	FG attempts	%
2's	10	26	38.5%
3's	8	18	44.4%
free throws	14	22	63.6%

SCORE BY QUARTER	1	2	3	4
Clear Lake	16	28	43	58
La Porte	15	22	30	43

LINESCORE	1	2	3	4	Final
Clear Lake	16	12	15	15	58
La Porte	15	7	8	13	43

REBOUNDS	LAKE	THEM
Offensive	4	8
Defensive	17	20

In the event two or more teams have identical won-loss records in district play, a tie exists. Each district has its own method of deciding final district standings at the end of the regular season when a tie occurs. This is an explanation of the approach used for District 24-5A starting with the 2006 - 2007 season.

In case of a two way tie for any of the top three spots, head to head is considered first for playoff seeding. In other words, who beat whom. If team A and team B tie for first and team A has beaten team B twice, A would be the #1 seed and B would be #2. If any two teams tied have split their two games, then the coaches involved will agree on playoff seeding or a coin flip will determine the spots.

If there is a two way tie for the final playoff spot(fourth), there will be a one game playoff at a neutral site agreed on by the coaches involved to determine the playoff representative.

If more than two teams are tied, there will be a tournament on Friday and Saturday to determine the winner. In the case of a three way tie, a coin flip will determine who gets the bye and that team will play the winner of the Friday game on Saturday. Coaches will pick a neutral site for all games involved. If there are four teams tied, a draw will determine the pairings and the winners will meet on Saturday with that winner going to the playoffs.

Clear Lake 62- Dobie 53

Saturday night at Pasadena’s Stoney Phillips Field House the Clear Lake Falcons met the Dobie Longhorns in the Area round of the 2007 playoffs. Although the Falcons had twice beaten the unranked Horns earlier in the season, this contest was no sure thing for the fifth ranked Falcons . The Longhorns were a much improved team and they were coming off a high from their upset victory over Port Arthur Memorial in the earlier bi-district round.

Defeating Dobie three times in the same season is a tall order even for the talent laden Falcons. Combine that with the 35 point performance from Dobie point guard Warrem Webb in the P. A. Memorial game Thursday and it becomes quite apparent that this would be no gimme for the Falcons. Sure the Falcons have a much more talented team but sometimes it is not the more talented team that emerges victorious in high school basketball.

From the outset Clear Lake had control of the game. Half way through the first quarter it was 8-14, Lake up by 6. It was obvious early that the Falcons were mostly on track and Dobie did not quite have the horsepower to keep up with Lake but the scrappy Dobie squad should not be underestimated. At the end of the first quarter it was 15-21, Lake up by 6.

The determined Longhorns were never out of it and kept it close throughout a hard fought second quarter. Clear Lake went three and one half minutes before they scored their first basket in the quarter. It was 19-21 when Armie Lewis, who had a game high 22 points, finally made Lake’s first field goal of the quarter. From this point Lake extended their lead to 10 with two minutes remaining in the first half. With four seconds remaining in the half Kendrell Thompson casually launched one of his high arching signature shots from three point land and made his last basket of the game to make it 25-36, Lake’s largest lead of the half.

Half way through the third quarter it was 31-38, Lake by only 7 points. Two free throws by Armie, one by Jimmy Witten, and a three point basket by Armie put Lake up 13 before five points by Dobie made it 36-44 at the close of the quarter. Although Lake appeared to be in control, it was still anybody’s game and too early for the Clear Lake crowd to relax.

An initial three point basket in the first twenty seconds of the final quarter brought Dobie to within five, 39-44 but this would be as close as they would come. A couple of Lake turnovers then made it apparent Lake might be losing control but a couple of timely steals by Kendrell and Armie helped the crowd relax just a little as Lake went up 41-51 with just over four minutes remaining. After some time outs and only 2:53 remaining in the game, Dobie free throws brought the score to 48-53, still too close to call. Two free throws by Armie and two by Fulton made it 48-57. Another basket by Fulton and the second of two free throws by Armie put Lake ahead 48-60 with 1:26 remaining. Dobie never gave up but could not make up the difference. Final score was 53-62.

The Falcons had 18 steals in this game (average is 11.7 pg) but they missed a total of 12 free throws (average misses per game is 4.8). This is the most free throws missed in a single game all season. In the previous game against Dulles, Clear Lake had made 20 free throws in a row. What a contrast.

The Falcons face La Porte in the regional quarterfinals on Tuesday.

All Photos for this game are posted and can be found at http://picasaweb.google.com/falconhoops .

Individual Scoring:
Armie Lewis 22 (5 assists), Kendrell Thompson 12 (5 steals),  Fulton Brisco 11,
Jimmy Witten 7 (5 rebounds, 4 steals), Andrew Gorie 6, RJ Turner 4

FALCON STATS	FG made	FG attempts	%
2's	16	42	38.1%
3's	5	9	55.6%
free throws	15	27	55.6%

SCORE BY QUARTER	1	2	3	4
Clear Lake	21	36	44	62
Dobie	15	25	36	53

LINESCORE	1	2	3	4	Final
Clear Lake	21	15	8	18	62
Dobie	15	10	11	17	53

REBOUNDS	LAKE	THEM
Offensive	5	9
Defensive	11	20

Clear Lake 58 – Pearland 55

(latest update of this article at 11:31 a.m. Wednesday)

Those who appreciate the beauty and the grace of the sport of high school basketball live for a thrilling, close game where victory is just a hair away from defeat and every player on the team makes an obvious difference as their team emerges victorious. Tonight’s win over Pearland in the Pearland gym was just such a game. Every player on Lake’s team made a noticeable difference. Examples of this include:

-         Cody Kinsey coming in the game to relieve Armie. When Armie was sidelined due to foul trouble (the first time with only one minute in the first quarter gone), Cody repeatedly kept Clear Lake in the game with outstanding play on both ends of the court. Cody scored 9 points, had six assists, and some key rebounds. Although every player deserves one, Cody should receive the honorary game ball if there were one.

-         Jimmy Witten, warrior that he has become, pump faked his way underneath the hoop to 12 points despite playing against much taller players with much longer arms. All of Jimmy’s five rebounds came at critical times in the game as Jimmy consistently rose to the occasion. Jimmy’s defense on Pearland’s Justin Reynolds was so exemplary it should be made into a training video.

-         Kendrell Thompson making a very timely three to tie the game at 55 with less than 25 seconds remaining in the game. It was Kendrell’s first successful three of the contest. Kendrell made both of his three point attempts in the fourth quarter and had five of Lake’s eight steals in the game.

-         RJ nailing two baskets in the first and third quarters to keep it close plus consistently excellent defense to harass his opponent. RJ made a basket and a free throw toward the end of the second quarter to give Lake a 12 point lead, their largest of the game. RJ tied with Jimmy for a team high 12 points. His continued recovery from a shoulder injury seems to be progressing well and his injury was not apparent as he raced around the court often seeming to be in more than one place at a time.

-         Christian putting on a dazzling dribbling exhibition down the baseline to score a reverse layup and literally shock his opponents as they realized they should not underestimate him. It was like watching Christian weave through some tall trees with deep roots as he maneuvered around three of them to score. The crowd loved it. Please, no one tell Christian that he is not a point guard.

-         Fulton working his butt off on defense and helping to double up on Pearland’s 6’8” Justin Reynolds. Fulton repeatedly combined his cunning and his stealth to be there when he needed to be.

-         Armie Lewis, snake bit though he was, was prevented from playing most of the game due to early foul trouble, came in off the bench after having to watch most of the game and nailed a three from the right wing to win the game with less than 4 seconds left on the clock. It was Armie’s only three point attempt.

-         Andrew Gorie playing up over the rim when we needed him there.

-         Anthony Bilcic playing heads up defense although he did not get much playing time.

-         Masterful coaching by Coach McDonald in this game was glaringly obvious.

Most expected this to be a great basketball game and it was that. Going into this game Pearland is the #2 defensive team in the region and Clear Lake is the #2 offensive team in the region. In this game Pearland held Lake 11 points under their average score. Another way to look at it is Lake scored 14 points above Pearland’s defensive average. Notice the three point difference coincides with the margin of victory. In the last four minutes of the third quarter the game was tied five times. In the fourth quarter the game was tied with less than 30 seconds remaining. It was a thrilling basketball game with all the marbles on the line (Do kids play marbles any more?). Perhaps Pearland could have played a little better although it was probably their best game in district play this season. If Lake had played their best (kinda like they did in California at times), the outcome would have been evident much sooner. And if a frog had wings, he would not ......

What happened at the end of the game?
With 18 seconds left on the clock (I believe), Kendrell nailed a three to tie the game. With 11 seconds remaining Cody fouled Pearland’s guard who missed the free throw. With time running out Kendrell passed to Armie in the corner. With only four seconds remaining on the clock Armie Lewis launched his only three point attempt from the right wing and hit nothing but nylon. As the ball fell through the net to the floor Pearland’s outstanding coach, Steve Buckelew, called timeout and was heard by one official over all the noise and pandemonium that erupted when Lake apparently won the game. After a lengthy discussion at the scorer’s table it was agreed to put 2.4 seconds back on the clock because the timekeeper had not stopped the clock (because he was not directed to by the official perhaps due to the noise level). Due to Clear Lake’s impressive defense, Pearland had difficulty in-bounding the ball. They finally did and as their player dribbled down the right sideline, one of the officials across the court blew his whistle just before the Pearland player launched a desperation shot from behind the mid-court line as time expired again. Another caucus at the scorer’s table occurred. Much to the dismay of the Clear Lake crowd, damned if they didn’t put the 2.4 seconds back on the clock again to allow Pearland another chance to score. It seems the official who blew his whistle thought the clock had been set to .24 seconds, not 2.4 seconds. When the buzzer did not sound after more than a second the official believed it was due to the horn not being turned on so he blew his whistle to signal the end of the game. This was deemed an inadvertent whistle as it should have been and Pearland was granted another 2.4 seconds to play. It was here when the Lake crowd began to wonder how many times we would have to win this game. When Pearland in-bounded the ball Kendrell stole it by preventing the pass and Andrew Gorie picked up the ball and advanced toward Lake’s basket as time expired again. No harm done as Lake was finally victorious.

The official’s mistake was in not realizing that it is not legal to put .24 seconds on the clock to continue the game at the end of a quarter. If the time remaining is less than .3 second, the quarter is over. I know they are human but perhaps these officials should be encouraged to brush up on the rules some more. When there is potentially a district championship at stake, the outcome of the game should not be determined by the officials, especially on a bogus call. It was bad enough that the officials took Lake’s second leading scorer (Armie Lewis) out of the game almost from the beginning by calling petty fouls to prove they knew how to blow their whistle. Armie got two fouls in the first minute of the game and his fourth foul came with only 1:15 ticked off in the third quarter. All but one of the fouls called on Armie seemed petty and insignificant.

Epilogue
I am not accustomed to predicting the outcome of a Lake varsity game in writing on the web site. I am very aware that high school basketball has what I like to call  "a high unpredicabilty factor". This is largely due to so many possible variances in a teenager's performance on the court combined with the uncertainty of the officials and to a lesser degree, the coaching and maybe the phase of the moon. What this means is only a fool would predict the outcome of some high school basketball games with any certainty. Believe me, I am well aware of that but I have so much faith in these boys and this TEAM. It is not just wishful thinking on my part.

This web site has been active since 2001. I have provided articles about the games since early 2002 when I assumed the headmaster duties from Bruce Greenwood who started the site by posting scores of the games.  Since the Lake loss to Pearland in the Lake gym,  I  adamantly predicted a Lake victory over Pearland. I really expected a margin of 7 to 9 points due to my perception of Lake's dominant offensive prowess (and my faith in these boys) so I was partly wrong. I suppose if Lake had played just a bit differently that wider margin might have happened.  

Never once during the game did I doubt that Lake would win but after my heart stopped about six times in the last minute of the game and then they kept adding time back on the clock, I began to wonder just how big a fool I really am. Fortunately my brain took over and I reminded myself that when Lake wins their last two district games and the first game of the playoffs, this team will have the best record of any Lake team since the '89 State Championship team and the '96 team that went to the regionals. Then I didn't feel like such a fool.

Housekeeping
1. Please ignore the District tie breaking rules on the GENERAL INFO Page on this site. After a decade of using the rules as stated on this site, last Spring the district coaches voted to change those rules. As soon as I receive the newly revised rules, the new rules will be posted. Based on a very cursory explanation, it seems to boil down to a playoff game or a coin flip. Pearland has one game remaining to play on Feb 9. Clear Lake has two. Lake still must win over Creek and Alvin to tie for the district championship. Although there is a playoff date built into the schedule (Friday, Feb 16), a playoff game would not be in Lake's best interest. Pearland would have had a week of rest and preparation while Lake would have only one day. A coin toss seems a better option.

2. A different approach to providing photos for the web site is in work and will be announced soon.

Individual Scoring: RJ Turner 12, Jimmy Witten 12, Kendrell Thompson 10 (5 steals),
Cody Kinsey 9 (6 assists), Armie Lewis 5, Fulton Brisco 4, Andrew Gorie 4, Christian Enriquez 2

FALCON STATS	FG made	FG attempts	%
2's	17	37	45.9%
3's	5	12	41.7%
free throws	9	12	75.0%

SCORE BY QUARTER	1	2	3	4
Clear Lake	15	31	44	58
Pearland	14	23	41	55

LINESCORE	1	2	3	4	Final
Clear Lake	15	16	13	14	58
Pearland	14	9	18	14	55

REBOUNDS	LAKE	THEM
Offensive	6	16
Defensive	13	19