Wildcats Basketball 70, Rockwall Heath 65 (Overtime)
The Wildcats’ basketball team outscored Rockwall Heath 7-2 in overtime to take a 70-65 win at Rockwall Heath Tuesday night. The Wildcats trailed by double digits with just minutes to go in regulation before staging a big comeback using a ferocious press. Inside the last minute, the Wildcats trailed by two. Dedric Godbolt got a huge steal but missed a driving layup. Victor Iwuakor grabbed the rebound and his thundering dunk tied the score with about 28 seconds left. A late Hawks shot did not fall sending the game to overtime. Iwuakor hit a 15 foot jump shot early in overtime to give the Wildcats a two point lead. Godbolt hit a cold blooded three pointer to increase the lead in overtime to 5. A Hawk basket reduced the Wildcats lead to 3. The Hawks then fouled Michael Jefferson. Despite admitting to being nervous, Jefferson hit both free throws and the Wildcats led by 5 with just seconds left. The lead held up. To pull off the upset, the Wildcats had to overcome a barrage of Hawk’s three point baskets. They hit a total of 14. Using six threes, the Hawks led after one quarter 23-15. They went cold in the second quarter and the Wildcats took a half time lead of 32-31. With five more threes in the third quarter, Rockwall Heath went up 52-43 after three quarters. The Wildcats big comeback in the fourth quarter in which they outscored the Hawks 20-11 tied the score at 63-63. Then came the overtime heroics. Keaston Willis led the Wildcats with 26 points. Iwuakor chipped in 16 points and spearheaded the Wildcats defense despite playing with four fouls for most of the second half. Michael Jefferson added 15 points. Godbolt had 6 points. GG Ezedinma had 5 points. Xavier Cork had 2 points. The Wildcats are now 2-0 for the season. They have their home opener Monday at 7:30 p.m. as they host Lindale in Wildcats Gym.
Lady Cats Basketball 33, North Lamar 17
Lady Cats Basketball Coach Jeff Chapman stresses defense. He feels that even if your offense is struggling, a stifling defense will still give you a chance to win. A case in point was the Lady Cats 33-17 victory at North Lamar Tuesday night. The Lady Cats led 11-0 after the first quarter. They increased their lead to 17-4 at halftime. They led 26-12 after three quarters and outscored the Pantherettes, 7-5 in the fourth quarter to take the 33-17 win. The Lady Cats are now 2-0 for the season. The Lady Cats have their home opener Friday at 6:30 p.m. as they host Hugo, Oklahoma.
