Grapevine boys hoops takes momentum into playoffs despite loss

The Grapevine boys basketball team wrapped up the regular season with a loss to Fort Worth Dunbar last week, but coach Jeremy Mills said his team looked a lot better this time around than the first time the two teams met.

Grapevine opened the playoffs against Wichita Falls Rider on Tuesday night after the press deadline, and Mills said that if his team wants to have a long run into the postseason, it will take a couple of things.

“I think the two things for us right now is that when we shoot the ball really well offensively, it seems like that opens up things on the inside,” Mills said. “It also seems like when we score inside, it kind of opens up shots on the three point line. So I think a good balance of inside/outside basketball is what we need offensively.

“Defensively, when we rebound really well, we are always in a good position to win. So I think right now those two things are what we need to have a good run.”

Grapevine lost to Dunbar by a score of 80-68, but trailed by just by just three points heading into the fourth quarter.

“We competed much better than we did the first time,” Mills said. “They were up on us by three at the end of the first quarter by three and then they were ahead by four at halftime. In the fourth quarter, they just kind of pulled away and beat us.

“I was really proud of how he played this time. We just didn’t make the plays we needed to make in the fourth quarter.”

Mills said that he does believe that the district did a good job of preparing his team for postseason competition.

“In our district, there are many different styles of play,” Mills said. “Some teams like to really get out and run, while other teams take a little more of a half court approach. In the playoffs, you’re going to see little bit of everything, and I like the fact that I think we can play up tempo basketball with the best of them, and we can slow it down and play more of a half court game against some opponents.”

This story was originally published February 22, 2016 at 4:22 PM with the headline "Grapevine boys hoops takes momentum into playoffs despite loss."