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E-mail This StoryBoys and Girls Baketball: Plano East versus Plano Senior
Kevin: Plano Senior Boys
Plano Senior will defeat Plano East tonight because East won on Tuesday.
Got that?
No?
Then allow me to explain. Had East lost to Wylie on Tuesday, the Panthers would have lost four straight and been desperately battling to stay in the playoff race. But East righted the ship by winning and is now one game back of the district lead.
Plano lost a tight one to Plano West, which is tied for the 9-5A lead, on Tuesday and at 1-4 in district the Wildcats desperately need a win.
East’s size advantage won’t be as big of a deal as one might think since Plano has been shorter than most of their opponents. The Panthers have the senior trio of John West, Anthony Hill and Kevin Smith, but don’t undersell the Plano duo of junior Rex Burkhead and senior Reggie Britton.
The top two teams in the district are Berkner, which Plano beat, and West, which the Wildcats almost beat. Plus, if Plano wants to make a seventh straight playoff appearance, the Wildcats have to start winning tonight.
Cory: Plano East Boys
The one-time frontrunners on the East side hit a rough spot in their season, dropping three straight games after having not lost back-to-back games all year.
Said slide started with a one-point loss to Skyline, who the Panthers coincidentally lost to last year in the playoffs.
The next three games, senior center Armani Blackmon was missing from the stat line.
Though Kevin Smith made his way back into the lineup, Plano East had to make adjustments. And it looks like they found their rhythm again with a three-point win over Wylie.
Plano Senior on the other hand is coming off another tough district loss. The Wildcats only district win is over Berkner, who East lost to during their skid, but I still like the Panthers in this game.
East has a definitive size advantage with Smith and senior John West on the court at any point. Also, these Panthers have been through a few more adverse situations, on and off the court, which pays dividends at the end of the fourth quarter.
Kevin: Plano East Girls
It’s hard to argue against a team that is 7-0 in district.
If this were a fight, I would probably pick Plano Senior, because that team is filled with scrappy, hard-nosed players. You can’t watch Plano sophomore Carson Mansion bang with West sophomore Jacqueline Jeffcoat (have you seen the size disparity) and not come away with a new level of respect for the Lady Wildcats.
But despite that toughness, not to mention the scoring abilities of Mansion and senior Ashley Dolberry, Plano East will win this game. When East senior Simone Bridges gets going, she can score and rebound almost at will, which is a nice compliment to senior Nicole Johnson, who is dangerous from multiple spots on the court.
The Lady Panthers have won their last three games by a combined 50 points. This contest should be closer, but I’ve got to go with East.
Plus, I think Cory is just picking Plano because he knows the Lady Wildcats don’t like him after he badmouthed the team before their playoff win over Garland Naaman Forest last February.
Cory: Plano Senior Girls
Seriously?
Look at the records and tell me you think Plano Senior has a chance. East is a perfect 7-0 in district.
There is now way, right?
One thing I can say is that we are in the second round of district play and Plano, on their home court, gave the Lady Panthers fits in the first match-up. And the Lady Wildcats led up until the last two minutes, where a short bench simply ran out of steam in a five-point loss.
Again, I have had East penciled in as the district champion all season, but I like this Lynn Meger-coached team.
They have picked it up in the face of misfortune and while the girls are rallying behind senior Ashley Dolberry, she has stepped her game up as well.
The senior is averaging 17 points per game in the last three Lady Wildcats’ contests.
The more I think about it, the more I like these Plano girls to win tonight; they are full of energy and are still fighting for their playoff lives.
