It was quite the busy weekend across the DFW landscape as a record number of girls hoops teams are headed to the UIL girls basketball state tournament, TAPPS crowned some champions and the boys basketball playoffs moved into the Regional Quarterfinals.
TAPPS
Back-to-Back: For the second straight year, Frisco Legacy was crowned as the 5A boys basketball TAPPS state champion with a 62-59 win over Houston Westbury Christian. Jonathan Alexandre scored 25 to lead Legacy, which finishes the year 32-6 after breezing through the first three rounds of the playoffs with an average win margin of 23 points.
It was the second time in three years Legacy and Westbury met in the state title with Westbury winning in 2017. It was a back-and-forth contest as Westbury led after the first quarter, then Legacy took the lead at the half, only to see Westbury regain the lead heading into the fourth.
Year of Firsts: In 6A, Plano John Paul II claimed its first-ever state title with a 51-48 win over the defending 6A champion San Antonio Antonian. John Paul II never trailed in the game, holding a double-digit lead at one point but staving off a late comeback to its 32nd straight game.
Dallas Yavneh also claimed its first state title with a 50-35 win over Tomball Rosehill. Yavneh started slow in the game before rattling off 10 straight points in the first quarter to grab a lead it would not give back. Yavneh finishes the year 31-3, finally taking home the title after falling short in the Final Four the last three years.
GIRLS BASKETBALL
San Antonio is where the Texas high school girls basketball eyes will be focused on this week as the State Tournament begins Thursday. The DFW area is well-represented with a record seven area teams headed to the home of the Alamo.
In 6A, No. 1 Duncanville - a 10-time state champion - will meet defending 6A state champ No. 18 Converse Judson after disposing of No. 13 Cedar Hill in the Regional Final on Saturday. In the other 6A state semifinal is McKinney, which is at the state tournament for the first time since 1998 after knocking off Plano 32-28 in the Regional Finals. It will go against No. 3 Cypress Lakes, which is undefeated on the year.
To 5A, the DFW area has two more teams that could meet in the state finals, both of which play on Thursday. No. 25 Frisco Liberty, making its third state tournament appearance after a 48-43 win over Midlothian in the Regional Finals, will play No. 23 College Station, which is at state for the first time ever. Making its fifth state tournament appearance and third time in the last four years is No. 5 Mansfield Timberview, which will play No. 6 San Antonio Veterans Memorial after edging past Amarillo 51-49 on Saturday.
Two more teams represent Class 4A from the DFW area after Saturday regional final wins. In the first semifinal, Dallas Lincoln will meet against Fairfield after taking down Melissa 55-45. And the juggernaut that is Argyle continued its playoff dominance, winning its 40th straight postseason game by beating Bridgeport 42-38. Argyle is looking for its sixth straight state title.
Lastly in 2A is Muenster, which knocked off Martin's Mill 47-45 to set up a date with Mason on Friday morning.
Complete State Tournament information.
BOYS BASKETBALL
Over the weekend, the boys wrapped up the Area Round of the playoffs with not many upsets taking place. A few marquee matchups:
In 6A, No. 1 Duncanville, the defending state champs - eased past Lewisville 86-73; No. 11 Waxahachie topped No. 24 Coppell 62-50; No. 6 Richardson outlasted No. 18 Denton Guyer 56-51.
To 5A where defending state champion No. 16 Mansfield Timberview escaped with a close win over Denton Braswell 40-36; No. 8 Dallas Kimball dominated Frisco Independence 75-63; undefeated No. 6 Carrollton Newman Smith breezed by Frisco Centennial 75-54.
In 4A, No.12 Dallas Lincoln took down No. 10 Fort Worth Dunbar 59-46; No. 8 Argyle easily handled Snyder 44-28; No. 7 Decatur had no trouble with Midland Greenwood in a 67-50 win.