By CONSTANCIO MARTINEZ, JR.
Special to the PRESS
The Port Isabel boys’ basketball team is in the midst of competing in Brownsville’s Valley Hoops summer program. On June 9th, the team was matched up against a familiar opponent, district rival Jubilee Brownsville.
As the game got underway, PI’s Shiloh Galvan hit a jumper to give PI an early 2-0 lead. Galvan then showed his passing skills as he found teammates Aidan Ramos and Willy Mosqueda down in the paint for a pair of baskets, as PI jumped out to an 8-4 lead.
The Tarpons then went cold offensively, allowing the Titans to rally and tie the score at 13-13. A basket by Marcos Baldovinos broke a 5-0 run by Jubilee, but the Titans maintained their momentum and continued to build on their lead.
Down 23-17, the Tarpons started to find their rhythm and went on an 8-0 run to retake the lead, 25-23, forcing Jubilee to call a timeout with one minute left in the first half. The highlight of the run came from a beautiful give-and-go play between PI’s Bryan Ramirez and Ramos.
After the referees declared Jubilee called an illegal timeout, Galvan hit the technical shot for the two points, followed by 3- pointer made by Ramirez to make it a 30-23 game. Jubilee hit one final basket at the buzzer, but now trailed the Tarpons 30-25 at halftime.
As play resumed, neither team got off to a good start as they missed a combined 13 shots in the first five minutes of the second half.
With both teams struggling with their shots, PI relied on strong defensive play and second-chance opportunities to maintain control. And Galvan did just that, as he was able to grab his own rebound and score on three straight plays, prompting Jubilee to call a timeout with PI up 41-32.
The Titans fought back to come within two points, 50-48, with about four minutes left in the game.
In a hard-fought battle down the stretch, the two teams traded baskets before Jubilee pulled ahead 55-54 with just 1:30 remaining on the clock.
In the closing seconds, Baldovinos came up with a crucial rebound and quickly found Galvan, who launched a long pass down the court to Mosqueda. Mosqueda finished the fast break with a layup, sealing the game and giving the Tarpons a 58-55 victory.
PI players of the game were Shiloh Galvan who had 23 points, nine rebounds, and three assists, and Aidan Ramos who contributed with 10 rebounds, eight points and an assist.
The team next set of games will take place at the Lopez High School on Tuesday, June 23. The grueling double header will feature PI vs Harlingen at 5:45pm and PI vs Brownsville Vets at 8 p.m.