(Geronimo) – Seguin avenged a Thursday morning loss to fellow Guadalupe County school Marion with a 64-59 win in overtime Saturday afternoon to capture the championship trophy of the Panther Classic boys basketball tournament at the Navarro Events Center in Geronimo.
The Bulldogs edged the Matadors 59-58 in the tournament’s first game on Thursday behind 20 points from Ryken Autry, 18 from Kadeem Blyden, and 10 from Lane Pawelek, including the go-ahead free-throws with less than a minute remaining.
John Jackson and Devin Matthews scored 16 and 12 points respectively to lead Seguin, but the Matadors were unable to generate a quality shot in the closing stretch of that game after rallying back from a six-point deficit in the fourth quarter.
Seguin responded with three straight wins to set up a championship game rematch with the Bulldogs. The Matadors took down Davenport 64-38 in Thursday’s second game, fought past the Judson JV 77-72 in Friday’s early game, and held off Wimberley 74-72 in Friday’s late game.
Marion beat the Judson JV 65-47, Davenport 41-34, and Luling 68-26 to advance to the championship game.
A Jon Padron three gave Marion a 42-37 lead early in the fourth quarter of Saturday’s game, and the Bulldogs were still up 50-47 with less than two minutes to play.
Kevon Williams hit a three to tie it at 50 with 56 seconds left, and that score held through the end of regulation.
Williams drained another three and hit a free throw to give Seguin a four-point cushion in the first minute of overtime.
John Jones scored the next 10 points for the Matadors on a pair of threes, a short jumper in the lane, and two free throws. His three with 29 seconds left pushed Seguin’s lead from two to five, and his free throws with seven seconds to play iced the game.
The Matadors were 1-8 and in need of a spark of momentum after Thursday morning’s loss to Marion. They now stand at 5-8 with a four-game winning streak heading into Tuesday’s district opener against Kerrville-Tivy.
“We grew tremendously through this tournament, so we’re appreciative of the opportunity to come and play in this tournament” Seguin head coach Guy Nowlin said. “We didn’t get off to a good start. We didn’t play our best game, not near to our potential on that opening day, but we were able to string together and build on the last few games.”
John Jackson led the Matadors with 21 points in the championship game, including the team’s final eight points in the second period as Seguin whittled a seven-point deficit down to one by halftime.
The performance capped a strong weekend for Jackson after pouring in 31 points against the Judson JV and 22 against Wimberley.
Jones finished with 13 points against Marion, Williams 12, Jakyari Matthews nine, Jeffrey Rodriguez five, and Devin Matthews four.
Autry scored 17 points to lead Marion. Padron added 13, and the Bulldogs received 10 apiece from Blyden and Dominic Castellanos.
Marion head coach Jon Allen says facing Seguin in the tournament served as great preparation for one of the Bulldogs’ chief rivals in District 26-3A.
“That’s Cole, who we talk about getting ready for every day,” Allen said. “We’re not planning for anybody else. We’re planning for them, and every game we play is to get ready for them. To match up with an athletic team team like that, I thought we did a great job.”
Seguin (5-8) opens the District 26-5A schedule on Tuesday at Goldie Harris Gym with a 6:45 p.m. home game against Kerrville-Tivy.
Marion (11-2) continues non-district play at home with an 8 p.m. opening tip against Yoakum.