North Crowley celebrates boys basketball milestone and more from the Fort Worth-area
North Crowley boys basketball head coach Tommy Brakel won his 700th career game following the Panthers’ 74-26 win over Fort Worth Dunbar on Friday night to tip off the 2022-23 season.
It was part of the Cowtown Tip-Off.
The event concluded on Tuesday night as Brakel and the Panthers beat Fort Worth Arlington Heights 56-38 for win No. 701. North Crowley improved to 2-0 on the season and is ranked No. 20 in the preseason Class 6A poll and No. 2 in the preseason Star-Telegram area high school boys basketball 6A rankings.
The North Crowley boys basketball program is in its 25th season, all with Brakel.
North Crowley is 246-15 all-time at home.
“Just incredibly emotional. The last 25 years have been filled with great friendships, so many great young men that have committed themselves to our program,” Brakel said.
“North Crowley means the world to us. We could’ve coached at other places, but this is where we want to be. I grew up in this community. People don’t know, but I’m a graduate of Crowley High School, back when there was just one school. This is the only place I’ve ever coached. Crowley ISD and southwest Fort Worth has meant so much to me and my family.”
Heights (0-2) scored the first points of the night with a Gus Harvey 3-pointer, but North Crowley responded with 13 straight points. KD Davis picked up a steal and fast break layup. He missed two free throws, but Kamoni Sieber got an offensive rebound. After his miss, Davis rebounded it and put it in for an 8-3 lead. Justin McCray hit an and-one and the Panthers finished the quarter with a 15-3 run and led 15-6.
The Yellowjackets cut it to 15-12 on back-to-back threes from Harvey and Jacorian Johnson. Harvey hit a third trey and it was 17-15 in the second quarter. Another strong finish by North Crowley (7-1 run) pushed the Panthers to a 25-16 halftime lead.
The Panthers went back up 10 at 26-16 early in the third and McCray’s fast break layup pushed North Crowley to its largest lead at 34-20. The Panthers led 36-25 after three and then got back-to-back dunks for a 44-26 lead early in the fourth quarter.
After the game, Brakel was recognized for win No. 700 with a video tribute from current and former players, coaches and colleagues. Crowley administrators spoke briefly and another tribute was said with overall and home records and top moments from the past.
“I know when we started the program 25 years ago here, we talked about starting a family type atmosphere so to see so many of them talking about what the program meant to them, it’s a little bit emotional and I appreciate everything that they have done for this program,” Brakel said. “Maybe we’ll get another 25 years of this.”
North Crowley has reached nine regional tournaments, including last season as the Panthers went 30-8. They’ve missed the playoffs just once.
The Panthers won the Class 5A state title in 2008, a 73-67 victory over Fort Bend Dulles.
“You can’t narrow it down close to two or three, but there have been just so many memories. One of them obviously was the state championship and what that team brought to us,” Brakel said. “Then there was a team we called the redeem team. There was a team that came back the one year we didn’t make the postseason and we called them the redeem team and made it all the way to the regional tournament.”
Top Performers
Finley Bizjack, Byron Nelson: 33 points, 7 rebounds, 7 assists vs Lamar
Camryn Tade, Carroll: 29 points vs Colleyville Heritage
Tayshaun Goston, Arlington: 23 points vs Timber Creek
Maya Sonday, Westlake Academy: 23 points, 6 rebounds vs Weatherford Christian
Reagan Jackson, Kennedale: 25 points vs Sunnyvale
Jayla Jackson Allen, Kennedale: 25 points vs Sunnyvale
Conner Lindsey, Byron Nelson: 17 points, 10 rebounds vs Lamar
Quinn Riddle, Birdville: 29 points vs Fort Worth Christian
Emma Kay Martin, Liberty Christian: 26 points vs Bridgeport
Boys
Scores
Allen 83, Eaton 47
Alvarado 69, Springtown 44
Arlington 56, Timber Creek 50
Boswell 60, Fossil Ridge 53
Brewer 68, Grapevine 63
Byron Nelson 81, Lamar 53
Cedar Hill 53, Eastern Hills 50
Centennial 77, Bell 41
Central 50, Bowie 39
Colleyville Heritage 51, Naaman Forest 45
Corsicana 44, Benbrook 39
DeSoto 71, Dunbar 47
Faith Family 53, Wyatt 51
Fort Worth Christian 58, Yavneh 37
Granbury 63, Joshua 35
Kennedale 63, Ranchview 45
Lipan 67, Peaster 43
Midlothian 60, Crandall 44
Midlothian Heritage 43, Saginaw 38
Nazarene Christian 53, Walnut Springs 49
North Crowley 56, Arlington Heights 38
Paschal 59, Burleson 52
Pantego 64, Burton 27
Richland 57, Northwest 41
Rider 54, Decatur 50
SGP 89, Keller 71
Summit 61, Memorial 38
Weatherford 54, Azle 53
Girls
Scores
Alvarado 54, Grandview 28
Argyle 58, Plano 35
Arlington Heights 66, Western Hills 15
Azle 51, Joshua 33
Birdville 61, FWC 45
Bowie 46, Mansfield 33
Brock 64, Cleburne 25
Byron Nelson 55, Seguin 23
Carroll 84, Colleyville Heritage 37
Castleberry 51, DHJ 24
Central 41, Creekview 34
Centennial 44, Richland 30
Crowley 79, Everman 23
Dunbar 49, Northwest 47
Faith 69, Greenhill 37
Glen Rose 51, Midlothian Heritage 34
Godley 56, Ranchview 21
Granbury 43, Burleson 21
Hamilton 46, Millsap 38
Hillcrest 38, Wyatt 33
Horn 56, Summit 49
Keene 35, Carter-Riverside 34
Kennedale 63, Sunnyvale 61
Liberty Christian 54, Bridgeport 35
Lingleville 29, Tolar 24
Lipan 92, Jacksboro 19
Nolan 62, ESD 34
North Forney 43, Bell 33
Parish 61, Aledo 45
Peaster 71, Keller 50
Rock Hill 52, Timber Creek 38
Saginaw 62, Chisholm Trail 36
Sam Houston 52, Garland 33
South Hills 40, Venus 30
St. Paul’s Prep 62, Joshua Christian 31
Timberview 60, Lake Dallas 26
Westlake Academy 45, Weatherford Christian 44
This story was originally published November 15, 2022 at 11:25 PM.
