HS Basketball: SMHS falls to Reagan

San Marcos senior forward Alex Frye fights his way through two San Antonio-Reagan defenders during Monday night’s Class 5A bi-district playoff game at Judson High (Photo by Gerald Castillo).

CONVERSE — San Marcos covered all the aspects needed to beat San Antonio-Reagan in Monday night’s Class 5A bi-district playoff at Judson High School.

The Rattlers rallied back from an early deficit, distributed the ball well with four players in double figures, drained numerous 3-pointers and missed only four free throws. One thing the San Marcos couldn’t do, however, is contain Reagan’s Michael Williams, whose 26 points helped Reagan rally past SMHS for a 64-58 win.

Reagan looked as if it was going to run away with the game early, jumping out to a 16-5 lead in the first frame. But thanks to 3-pointers from Brandon Coleman, Michael Hicks and Josh Coleman, it allowed San Marcos to cut Reagan’s lead to 20-16 going into the second quarter.

A 9-0 run — capped by Josh Coleman’s fast-break lay-up — gave San Marcos a three-point lead with 2:20 left in the second quarter, as Ben Acosta’s 3-pointer at the buzzer gave SMHS a 36-31 halftime lead.

“I told the seniors at the beginning of the game if things don’t go well early, it’s their job to make sure the other guys don’t panic,” SMHS head coach David Norris said. “They came back out and really fought hard to get back in it, and I was really proud to see that.”

San Marcos upped the lead to 42-31 in the early moments of the third before Williams started to take control.

After canning a pair of short jumpers, Williams cut the Rattlers’ lead to 46-45 with a buzzer-beating 3-pointer at the end of the quarter.

Williams gave Reagan the lead when he opened the fourth with a trey from the right corner, then kept his team on top with his ability to dribble around the San Marcos defense and effectively take time off the clock.
 
Reagan pushed the lead to six, but San Marcos didn’t give in. A 3-pointer from Brandon Coleman, followed by an inside hook shot from senior post Alex Frye and a transition basket from Josh Coleman helped SMHS to even the score at 58-all with 56 seconds remaining.

But SMHS couldn’t find a way to get the ball out of Williams’ hands in the final minute and was forced to foul Williams twice. Williams, who has committed to play at TCU, answered by making four consecutive free throws in the final 30 seconds to give Regan the win.

“He was just another example of the type of quality players we had to face all season,” Norris said. “Isaiah covered him a tough as nails, but he showed why he’s headed to the next level.”

Hicks led San Marcos with 12 points, followed by 10-point efforts from Frye, and both Colemans. Jarrett Henderson, who slammed home a pair of dunks, finished with eight.

Monday’s loss marked the final game for SMHS senior starters Frye, Hicks and Brandon Coleman. In all San Marcos loses nine seniors from this year’s squad.

“I can’t say enough about these seniors,” Norris said. “They have been with me for three years now and have done everything that I have asked of them. They will all be missed.”