Trojans knocked out after strong start vs. Cedar Hill

The weather finally let up enough for the Trinity boys basketball team to play its bi-district game with Cedar Hill, but the Trojans fell short, 65-53 last Wednesday at Mansfield Timberview High School.

Despite the Trojans leading by as much as 25-8, Cedar Hill inched its way back and was able to advance in the playoffs.

“The kids executed the game plan, we were up then had a few turnovers and let them cut it at half,” Trinity coach Mark Villines said. “However, I am very proud with our effort.”

Cedar Hill got within 32-24 at the break before the Trojans committed a few turnovers in the third quarter to let the Longhorns tie the game up. Trinity fell behind 52-46 in the fourth with two minutes left before Cedar Hill kept going to the free-throw line to secure the victory.

The Trojans just ran out of gas in the end, but Villines is hopeful that a third-straight playoff appearance is just a taste of what's to come and that the kids stay hungry from it for next season.

“I am super proud of what these guys accomplished. Losing 12 players, we had no idea what to expect. We just kept preaching tradition that had been established,” he said. “We were playing our best basketball at the end and getting into the playoffs was special.”

“We have gone to the playoffs three years in a row – that has never been done in the history of Trinity boys' basketball.”

Originally set for Monday, the game was pushed back twice before beginning on Wednesday. With school also canceled, it was tough to get practice time in.

“We had to adjust. The weather causes all of us to make adjustments, biggest thing is hoping the kids stay focused and ready to go,” Villines said.

Luckily for Villines and Trinity, they did have some practice time due to having a bye in the final week of the regular season. They had a good practice on Feb. 21 to make up for all the postponements, the coach said.

“We are lucky we had a bye on Feb. 17. We didn't know who we would play, so we had to prepare for Cedar Hill or DeSoto,” Villines said.

6-foot-3 senior C.J. Bird played his final game with Trinity. He plans to play at the next level with LeTourneau University in Longview.

“Being a young team, a lot of guys had never played in a playoff game before. Everyone was really excited to play. Despite that, we felt we had a good chance to win going into the game,” Bird said. “With the delays, we never really knew when we would play, so we had to stay focused on the game, even on our days off – just in case we had a game that day.”

Trinity finished the year with a 17-14 record.

This story was originally published March 2, 2015 at 12:57 PM with the headline "Trojans knocked out after strong start vs. Cedar Hill."