Rattlers’ fast start key to second ‘Classic’ victory

The key to the San Marcos Rattler 13-game winning streak has been starting fast, and getting better every day with their pressure man-to-man defense. The No. 16 Rattlers (20-2) finished the first day of the San Marcos Holiday Classic with a 74-53 victory over the Magnolia Bulldogs on Wednesday night.

To start, the Rattlers got off to a running start winning the jump with the ball going into the front court as senior forward Malik Presley ran it down and took it baseline for an easy slam just eight seconds into the game.

“We said after the first game our number one goal was to have the focus and the intensity was to start the game with it,” head coach Dan Miller said. “Tonight, they were locked in from the start of the game. I was very pleased with how we started with focus, intensity, and the shooting of the basketball.”

The Rattlers connected on nine 3-pointers as a team in the first half, led by Presley and senior guard Jayven Cofer who both connected on rhythm 3s en route to a double-digit lead throughout the first half. San Marcos was able to jump out to a 27-14 first-quarter advantage.

“After the first game, we just sat down as a team and really talked about what we needed to fix,” Cofer said. “We came out here, made our adjustments. We moved the ball quicker, and were able to get more in-rhythm 3s and knocked them down.”

The second quarter was much of the same with the Rattlers controlling the flow of the game with the defensive intensity forcing the Bulldogs into turnovers which led to easy fast-break opportunities.

“We just played with the extra pass tonight, a lot of our 3s tonight were assisted on,” Miller said. “We just shared it, and they felt really good in the first half shooting the ball. We didn’t really have to run a lot of our stuff tonight; share the ball and hit the rhythm 3.”

San Marcos took a 46-20 lead into the break and then came out in the second half with the same energy and intensity as they had in the first half.

Junior guard Zyair Jolivette was able to get free for two corner 3s to extend the lead along with two fast break layups as he finished the night with 12 points for the Rattlers. Cofer led all scorers on the night with 18, while Presley finished with 13 points.

With a double-digit lead after three quarters, Miller was able to rest his first unit and turned to his second unit for the entirety of the 4th quarter.

“I love when they give us energy, so we try to do the same thing for them when it’s their turn,” Cofer said of his teammates getting into the game. “They go really hard whenever we are in the game. When they get in the game, I try to be as loud as I can and I hope everyone in the gym can hear me. I love cheering for my teammates.”

The Rattlers played two games on Thursday in the tournament against Katy-Taylor and Hallsville, and wrap up the Classic on Friday with a 1 p.m. tip-off against the Trinity Christian Trojans, who boast a 23-3 overall record this season.