Wildcats Basketball Coach Clark Cipoletta said the way the Wildcats played Tuesday night was a recipe for a loss. Still he was proud of the way the Wildcats battled back, hit some late shots, played with more energy and came away with a win. The Wildcats defeated Greenville, 53-51 Tuesday night in the Lions’ Den.
Still Coach Cipoletta was concerned that the Wildcats struggled shooting the ball and didn’t execute for most of the night. He said there was a lot for the Wildcats to learn from that game. Sadaidriene Day Day Hall returned after missing four games with a concussion and Coach Cipoletta said at times the team tried to do too much. He gave a lot of credit to Greenville. He said they hit shots, killed the Wildcats on the boards and did some things that made it hard for the Wildcats to score.
Point guard Jeremiah Roland provided the Wildcats with a fantastic finish hitting a big three-pointer that put the Wildcats ahead and then deflecting a Greenville pass so that the Lions could not even take a final shot before the final horn sounded. Coach Cipoletta said Roland has been big for the Wildcats all season long on both offense and defense. He said Roland is being called on to do more with Keaston Willis out with a small fracture in his right ankle.
Coach Cipoletta was asked if Greenville showed other teams how to defend against the Wildcats daring them to shoot threes while packing the lane. Coach Cipoletta said he would love for teams to take that approach. He said Tuesday night was just one of those where the Wildcats had a hard time hitting shots. He said Grayson McClure started out 0 for 6 from behind the arc, Roland was 0 for 4 and Cameron Kahn had an off night from long range.
Still the Wildcats continue to play “first team to 53 points wins”. Three of the Wildcats wins have ended up Wildcats 53 Texas High 52, Wildcats 53 Royse City 52 and now Wildcats 53 and Greenville 51. Coach Cipoletta said the Wildcats are finding ways to win. He said the Wildcats have experience along with good senior leadership. He said the team prepares to be successful. Coach Cipoletta said the Wildcats difficult schedule full of highly ranked Class 6A teams has also worked to prepare the Wildcats. He said in those games, the Wildcats had a battle back and fight to the end time after time.
The Wildcats host Mount Pleasant on senior night Friday night.
