(Courtesy photo/Albert Villegas)
By ALBERT VILLEGAS
Special to the NEWS
A swarming first half defense enabled the San Benito Greyhounds to rope the Brownsville Porter Cowboys at home Tuesday night.
The lone Porter basket (two points), thanks to San Benito’s stifling defense in the second quarter, paved the way for the 51-24 non-district home victory.
The ‘Hounds improved their season record to 4-6.
The game was pretty much decided after the opening quarter when the ‘Hounds doubled up the Cowboys for a 12-6 lead.
San Benito reached 30 points at the 3:42 mark of the third quarter and went up by 20 points before time expired. In the fourth quarter, San Benito allowed Porter to score only six points.
San Benito’s leading scorer was Deven Ullela with 14 points. He went 4-of-7 from the free-throw line. Teammate AB Rodriguez (11 points) had three treys to help the team.
Since defeating the Donna Redskins at home before Thanksgiving, the ‘Hounds have played five other games.
The results are as follows in order of play: Riviera Kaufer (won 70-29), Edinburg North (lost 43-35), Sharyland (lost 54-50 overtime), and Laredo Martin (won 55-42).
It’s been more than a week that San Benito Coach Luis Garza has played a full roster since football season ended.
He said the aggressive play and the chances taken to chase down the ball are key. It was the reason Porter committed turnovers several times, he said.
When big leads like this happen, Garza said it opens up other opportunities.
“We’re looking to see if we can stay focused and disciplined enough to run the offense instead of getting cheap baskets,” Garza said. “In these games, we’re going up against a team that doesn’t know what we’re running, unlike in practices when we’re going against each other. When we have a lead, we can also practice what we can get better at.”
The ‘Hounds travel to Weslaco Friday to continue season play.