The relationship between a coach and a player can be a two-way street if done right. San Marcos head coach Steven Pinchback was told by his players early in the game and late that the team wanted to speed Temple up with a press.
Pinchback listened and that’s what landed the Rattlers their first win of the 2020-21 season. The press is what allowed San Marcos to open the game up 20-6. After going back to it, the team forced down-to-the-wire turnovers to seal a 59-52 win.
“We wanted to bait them a little bit. We went with the press early just to start the game because that’s probably going to be how we play, very up-tempo. We decided we zone them, then at the end, let’s turn it up a little bit more with the press again,” Pinchback said. “I thought we were in better shape, to be honest. And my guys wanted to put a little pressure on them so I’m that type of guy. I’m gonna listen to my guys and that’s what we do.”
Sophomore guard Kaden Gumbs and forward Malik Presley combined for 17 of the Rattlers’ 20 points in the first quarter. Temple fought back into it, going on a 9-0 run to start the second quarter. They utilized speed and athleticism, getting to rim and eventually cut what was a 14-point lead to four in a matter of minutes.
Gumbs had no conscience throughout the contest, showing off brand new moves. He pulled up from the volleyball line with three seconds left in the third quarter and netted it, giving San Marcos a 41-38 lead. After feeling confident, he had to give the crowd a celebration.
“If I’m being honest … I didn’t have a thought process,’’ Gumbs said smiling. “I just saw the clock go down, five, four, three, I shot it and just made it. Then I had to shoot an arrow right at the crowd after.”
The players requested to Pinchback once again, ‘Let’s get into the press.’ He trusted them and they came up huge. You could hear Temple head coach Michael Thomas tell his team to attack the kid with the knee brace. It backfired as that kid was senior forward Grayson Harris, who took three charges in the fourth quarter alone.
Harris said he took offense to the coach calling him out defensively at the end of the game. After the third charge, Harris pointed to his knee brace after he got up off the ground. His teammates believe those were the biggest plays of the game.
“Grayson is a big help every game. Those charges, those are the most clutch charges this season. Doing the little things and just those little attributes help us win games in the end,” Presley said.
Gumbs finished with a career-high 29 points along with four rebounds and three steals. Presley finished with 21 points after going 10-16 from the free throw line.
San Marcos (1-3) returns to the floor Tuesday against Austin LBJ at 7:30 p.m. on the road. Pinchback expects the team to find some wins through their next few games as the schedule eases itself before district.
“These next few games are winnable games, they’re not ranked opponents. They’re good opponents but they’re not what we’ve been playing, so let’s play,” Pinchback said. “I thought they played down a little bit to these guys. But that’s gonna happen when you’re still trying to figure it out. We’ve still got some young guys and some senior guys that haven’t ever really played varsity, so you know it’s about riding that wave.”
