Boys’ basketball is 3-1 and second in district after their close loss at Brownwood 87-92 Jan. 28. There are four other teams in the district. The boys defeated Gatesville, Glen Rose and Stephenville. They will enter the second round of district play tonight at home at 7:30 p.m. against Stephenville. 

“My expectations for the second round of district games is to make sure we win the right way and go to playoffs,” senior forward Johnki Gardner said. “The team is preparing for it by studying the game. Last season I wasn’t here but from what I’ve seen on their film from last year versus this year, it was a heck of a difference.” 

The boys’ lost to Glen Rose twice last year and Brownwood once. This year they defeated Glen Rose in the first round and lost to Brownwood.

“This year against Glen Rose we just came out and got hot early and proceeded to just maintain a steady lead and then tire them out at the end,” junior guard Tak Stinnet said.

Last season the boys’ were 4-3 in district, finishing third and losing to Argyle in the second round of playoffs. 

“Our expectation [this season] is to make a good playoff run and a lot of people will be surprised on what we can achieve,” senior guard Nate Borchardt said. 

The match-up against Stephenville tonight will start the second round of playoffs. The boys’ performance for the next four games will determine their final ranking in district and their opponent for the first round of playoffs. 

 “I think that the loss against Brownwood was hard for us,” Gardner said. “We played hard but it’s all about the next game. We’re going to learn from our mistakes and come back harder. My expectations for the playoffs is for us to get as far as we can and have fun. We are going to prepare for that by working hard on and off the court and staying humble.”