TexasHoops’ UIL State Tournament Preview: 5A-3A-1A

In just two short days the pinnacle of high school basketball in the state of Texas will begin in San Antonio as teams from all over the state will converge on the Alamodome in search of a state championship. TexasHoops.com will be with you every step of the way, providing live updates on Twitter as well as recapping all 18 games over the course of the 3 day tournament. But first, we start with the tourney previews for day 1, with an eye catching slate of games to start the weekend off right with the 1A, 3A and 5A final fours.

Game 1: San Antonio Wagner vs. Mansfield Timberview, 7 PM

Analysis: The first of two rematches from last year's state championship games on Thursday, though unlike last year No.5 ranked Wagner will enter as favorites to take the win. There are still some familiar faces from last year's matchup, though most of those don the red and black of the T-Birds in the form of 2019 all-tournament selection Journee Phillips and guard Jasean Jackson. They still have plenty of other holdovers from last year, and avoiding the TABC No.1 and No.2 ranked teams in the draw will have fueled their confidence of claiming that elusive state title after near misses last year and in 2017.

Timberview may have graduated their all-tournament trio from last year (Trazarien White, CJ Smith and Rodrigo Soares), but the addition of Joey Madimba to the mix proved to be the piece they needed to get back to San Antonio for the 3rd time in 4 years, with their previous two trips ending with titles. The names have changed, but the Wolves can still call on Jared Washington, Eyan Gooden and Chendall Weaver, who hit the game-winner in the regional final, to help their cause. Timberview HC Duane Gregory will be all too familiar with the personnel at Wagner, Phillips especially considering he put 22 on the Wolves during last year's title game. It's a really intriguing matchup, especially considering Timberview's emphasis on being a lockdown defensive team as compared to Wagner's more run and gun style. This rematch will be won in the margins and boil down to execution and defensive grit more than anything else.

Game 2: Lancaster vs. Fort Bend Hightower, 8:30 PM

Analysis: While to some extent it's a shame that the No.1 and No.2 teams in 5A were drawn against each other in the semifinal round, there's no better way to start the tournament than with a show-stopper of a game on night 1 of the event. You know the names. Mike Miles, Wade Taylor and Marco Foster for Lancaster. Bryce Griggs, Ja Robertson and Chris Harris for Hightower. It's going to be worth the price of admission, the gas to get to San Antonio, and taking a personal day at work on Friday.

This one honestly previews itself. The best 5A team in the DFW versus the best 5A team in Houston, with elite players on both sides. It’s hard to come up with better marketing for a game than that. Lancaster comes into the Alamodome with 1 loss. Hightower has a few more, but have only lost once since the start of December, with that coming against no.3 ranked district foe Shadow Creek. Their styles of play are similar, and more likely than not it's going to come down to which player takes over the game. And looking back to the regional final games, where Griggs exploded for 43 points and Taylor and Miles went for 31 and 26 respectively, there is no shortage of candidates for who could step up to get the win. This is THE can't miss game of the semifinal round, so I suggest getting your eyes on it any way you can.

Game 1: Coldspring-Oakhurst (36-4) vs. Dallas Madison (22-12), 1:30 PM

Analysis: Don’t let the 12 losses fool you, Madison has been the No.1 ranked team in 3A almost wire to wire this season and for good reason. Their speed at every position is hard to cope with and they have experience on their side as defending 3A champs making their 8th appearance in the last 12 years. While last year they were a young team, this year their expectations are nothing less than a title, with returnees like Dyeshun King, Warren Dunn, and last year’s Championship Game MVP Jerome Rogers Jr. in their ranks.

Coldspring-Oakhurst are the outlier of the foursome, making their first ever appearance at the state tourney after exorcising some old demons on their way here. The Trojans had to go through no.2 Crockett, who had not only beaten them twice earlier in the year but also in last year’s regional semis, and then were able to claw out a 10 point win over Diboll to make their final four debut. Experience is the name of the game for Coldspring, as they have a senior laden squad with plenty of playoff games under their belt, led by guards Jacoby Bishop and Duke Lawniczak. If they can adjust early to Madison’s speed and up tempo playing style, this has the ingredients to be an electric game.

Game 2: Peaster (34-5) vs. San Antonio Cole (32-6), 3:00 PM

Analysis: While last year served as a coming out party of sorts for 6-foot-11 Vince Iwuchukwu, this year he's back and meaning business in his sophomore campaign. As the successor to Cole alum Shaquille O'Neal, Iwuchukwu has a lot of expectations on his shoulders but so far has been handling the hype very well. Iwuchukwu has been a national name for some time now, and will hope to use the momentum and experience he's picked up since last year's semifinal loss to Madison to take the next step and claim a title. But that by no means is to say that the big man is by himself in Cole's quest for a title. Just in his sophomore class the Cougars feature talented prospects like Silas Livingston and Trey Blackmore, in addition to senior captains Jordyn Arnette and Andrew Reed. With lessons learned from last year, I'm expecting big things from Cole during this year's tournament.

On the other side of things, this moment has been a long time coming for Peaster. Their traditional rival and 3A powerhouse Brock had ruled the region in basketball for the past 10 or so years, but the Greyhounds have returned on the 20th anniversary of their first ever state championship looking to add another to the cabinet. Even though Peaster is appearing in the final four for the first time since 2002, they will be quietly confident after they cruised through Region 1, only really struggling with No.9 Shallowater in the regional final. In Braxton Bosher they have one of the best pure scorers in the 3A class, who dominated the regional tournament going for 27 and 22 as part of a tournament MVP performance. Peaster can also draw upon the scoring ability of Drew Smith and Major Glenn, and will need big contributions from both if they are to conquer Cole.

Game 1: La Rue LaPoynor (33-3) vs. Nazareth (27-9), 8:30 AM

Analysis: In a similar theme to 2A, conference 1A features 3 of the 4 teams that were here last year, including a matchup of defending state champ vs state runner up in the semifinal round. The way things worked out, the only team here with no immediate prior experience turns out to be No.1 ranked LaPoynor, matched up against last year’s semifinalist Nazareth in the opening game of the tournament. It’s hard to talk about LaPoynor without first mentioning senior standout Isaac Jackson. Jackson is a strong contender for 1A player of the year and a strong showing in the state tournament would help him close in on the award, especially if there’s a gold medal to go with it. LaPoynor will play a different style to the rest of the field, liking to get up and down more than their 3 counterparts, but as the no.1 seed will be strong favorites going into things.

Nazareth lost a heartbreaker last year in the opening game of the tournament, falling at the buzzer to Jayton. To make things tougher on the Swifts, they also graduated their leading scorer Slade Gerber to make a return to the final four look like a tall task. But to their credit they have answered the bell like a champion, reloading and taking care of business to make their 18th appearance at state. The Swifts will look to Nathaneal Van Dijk and Trent Gerber to power their offense against LaPoynor’s high flying attack, and the contrast of styles could make this one very interesting.

Game 2: Jayton (31-3) vs. Slidell (30-9), 10:00 AM

Analysis: Yet another rematch of a title game from last year, as Slidell will look to get the same result as last year’s 49-36 championship game win in their semifinal matchup with Jayton. The Jaybirds return all-tournament selections Tye Scogin and Aaron Hernandez as part of one of the state’s stingiest scoring defenses, not allowing any team to score over 40 throughout their playoff run.

In the other corner is defending 1A champion Slidell, fresh off defeating Graford in a 53-47 barnburner in the region 3 final. The Greyhounds feature a deadly 1-2 punch in guard Brock Harwell and post Slayton Pruett, who grabbed 21 boards in last year’s title game against the Jaybirds. It’s undeniable that Slidell will have a slight mental edge over the rest of the field, simply because they have already been there and done that when it comes to lifting the trophy. If they can play to their strengths and rely on their big game experience, there’s no reason a repeat should be out of their reach.