Gonzales battles Goliad in last game before Christmas

The Gonzales varsity basketball team continued its gauntlet of a non-district schedule Friday night, traveling to take on state-ranked #14 Goliad in the final game before the Christmas Break.

The game marked the fifth against a state-ranked opponent in the last two weeks for the Apaches, who fell to Goliad 66-44 after the Tigers pulled away with a hot-shooting 3-point performance in the second half.

“We knew coming in that this was another tough test against a really good team, and I liked the way we competed early,” Gonzales head coach Brady Keane said. “Our energy and physicality in the first quarter were where they needed to be, but we gave up too many second-chance opportunities as the game went on. We have to be more disciplined and finish possessions with rebounds.”

Gonzales led for much of the first quarter thanks to a strong start on the offensive and defensive end of the floor. But Goliad, who shot 40 3-pointers in the game, started to find holes in the Apaches defense and capitalized both from behind the arc and on second-chance points.

Junior Brealien Jones led the way in scoring for Gonzales while posting nine points and three rebounds. Senior Bill Greathouse had eight points and two rebounds, junior Damion Hunt had seven points and five rebounds, sophomore Jayvion Gonzalez had six points and seven rebounds and senior David Clack had five points and four rebounds.

The loss dropped the Apaches to 7-11 through the first half of the season, though the team showed marked improvement while competing against a tough schedule over the last 10 days. Gonzales will be back in action at the Luling Tournament before continuing with quality non-district opponents in La Grange, Sinton and state-ranked Wimberley leading up to the start of district play.

“I think we’ve grown a lot as a team as we find a way to push through adversity right now,” Keane said. “We’ve played a gauntlet of opponents over the last couple weeks, and we’re getting better because of it. The guys are going to come back well-rested and ready to get back on track as we approach the start of district.”