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THE WOODLANDS, Texas -- The near-capacity crowd came out expecting to see a 3-point barrage Friday night at The Woodlands High School.
They did.
But it was the Woodlands Highlanders, not the 3-point happy New Caney Eagles, who put on one of the best long-distance shooting displays of the season.
The Highlanders (21-4 overall and 5-0 in District 14-5A play) made a season-high 14 3-pointers to overwhelm the Eagles 88-49 in a battle for first place in the 14-5A standings.
New Caney, which leads the Houston area in 3-pointers attempted and made, fell to 19-8 overall and 3-2 in the league.
“Our intensity level was outstanding (tonight),’’ said The Woodlands head coach Dale Reed, who is trying to guide the Highlanders to their first district title since 2007. “We knew if we lost, we would drop into second place. But if we won, we would be two games ahead.’’
The Woodlands, who also has made 12 threes in one game twice this season, never was in danger of losing.
The Highlanders easily broke New Caney’s helter-skelter traps all night long and spotted up for one 19-foot-9 bomb after another.
In the first quarter, Wes Cole, J. Smith and Ryan Keehn all had 3-pointers to lead the Highlanders to a 17-4 lead.
Cole caught fire in the second period, draining four triples as the Highlanders went into the lockerroom with an overwhelming 40-14 advantage.
“We got a lot of good looks and we made a lot of those good looks,’’ Reed said. “On the other end, we didn’t give them many looks. They only shot five 3-pointers in the first half and made three of them. You can see they are dangerous.’’
The Highlanders’ onslaught continued in the third period as The Woodlands’ zone traps forced New Caney into one turnover after another.
The Eagles’ miscues led to easy Highlander layups or short pull-up jumpers on the other end as The Woodlands carried a 64-23 cushion into the final quarter.
Reed let the shock troops play for the final eight minutes as Michael Macis, Luke Heath and Andy Heller helped the home-standing Highlanders open the largest lead of the night at 85-37.
New Caney, led by the play of Tyler Castleberry and Joey Cantrell, put on a late rally to make the score a little more respectable, but The Woodlands was clearly the better team on this night.
“The thing that I was most proud of was how hard we played,’’ Reed said. “That might have been the most intensity we have played with all year.’’
Reed, however, knows his team will have to ratchet it up one more notch to get a win on the road at College Park on Tuesday.
“College Park has a great team,’’ said Reed, who watched his club beat the Cavaliers 59-53 a couple weeks ago. “The atmosphere is going to be great. It is going to be tough to win over there. But our kids are looking forward to the challenge.’’
They did.
But it was the Woodlands Highlanders, not the 3-point happy New Caney Eagles, who put on one of the best long-distance shooting displays of the season.
The Highlanders (21-4 overall and 5-0 in District 14-5A play) made a season-high 14 3-pointers to overwhelm the Eagles 88-49 in a battle for first place in the 14-5A standings.
New Caney, which leads the Houston area in 3-pointers attempted and made, fell to 19-8 overall and 3-2 in the league.
“Our intensity level was outstanding (tonight),’’ said The Woodlands head coach Dale Reed, who is trying to guide the Highlanders to their first district title since 2007. “We knew if we lost, we would drop into second place. But if we won, we would be two games ahead.’’
The Woodlands, who also has made 12 threes in one game twice this season, never was in danger of losing.
The Highlanders easily broke New Caney’s helter-skelter traps all night long and spotted up for one 19-foot-9 bomb after another.
In the first quarter, Wes Cole, J. Smith and Ryan Keehn all had 3-pointers to lead the Highlanders to a 17-4 lead.
Cole caught fire in the second period, draining four triples as the Highlanders went into the lockerroom with an overwhelming 40-14 advantage.
“We got a lot of good looks and we made a lot of those good looks,’’ Reed said. “On the other end, we didn’t give them many looks. They only shot five 3-pointers in the first half and made three of them. You can see they are dangerous.’’
The Highlanders’ onslaught continued in the third period as The Woodlands’ zone traps forced New Caney into one turnover after another.
The Eagles’ miscues led to easy Highlander layups or short pull-up jumpers on the other end as The Woodlands carried a 64-23 cushion into the final quarter.
Reed let the shock troops play for the final eight minutes as Michael Macis, Luke Heath and Andy Heller helped the home-standing Highlanders open the largest lead of the night at 85-37.
New Caney, led by the play of Tyler Castleberry and Joey Cantrell, put on a late rally to make the score a little more respectable, but The Woodlands was clearly the better team on this night.
“The thing that I was most proud of was how hard we played,’’ Reed said. “That might have been the most intensity we have played with all year.’’
Reed, however, knows his team will have to ratchet it up one more notch to get a win on the road at College Park on Tuesday.
“College Park has a great team,’’ said Reed, who watched his club beat the Cavaliers 59-53 a couple weeks ago. “The atmosphere is going to be great. It is going to be tough to win over there. But our kids are looking forward to the challenge.’’
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