No. 1 ranked Mansfield Timberview girls basketball has a goal: win a state championship
Mansfield Timberview girls basketball team has won 30 consecutive games.
Yet, the Wolves’ expectations are higher.
Head coach Kit Martin’s team isn’t just beating the competition, the Wolves are steamrolling every team that dares to step in their way. With two games left in the regular season, the Wolves are the Texas Association of Basketball Coaches No. 1 ranked Class 5A team.
“We have a goal this year, and our goal is to win a state championship,” Martin said. “Period. So we have to beat any opponent we come upon.”
Timberview’s last eight wins have all been by 30 points or more. Martin’s Wolves are the top team in Class 5A, but Martin said the girls don’t feel any pressure from having a target on their back.
The pressure they feel is what they “put on themselves.”
“Nobody can make the pressure build more than we do already,” Martin said. “We felt that way from the beginning of the season. This is what we want and we’re committed to that.”
Timberview won the state title in 2010 and has made it to the state championship in the 2017 and 2018 seasons. Timberview, in 2020, made it to the state semifinal.
In the last three seasons, Timberview has been eliminated in the regional semifinal. Will 2024 be the year the Timberview Wolves get over the hump and back to the state tournament?
They’re a favorite to win the state title and the No. 1 ranked Class 5A team in the Fort Worth-area. Martin said that playing unselfish, team basketball has been the driving force of the Wolves’ dominant 30 game win streak.
“We share the ball,” Martin said. “We’ve got four people averaging double digits. We play great team defense. We share the burden. We share the ball. We share the rebounding. Nobody has to do everything, and that makes it very difficult for other teams to beat us because there’s so many weapons coming at you.”
According to Martin, the Mansfield Timberview 2024 team in similar to the 2023 team, but one thing makes the squad a little bit better: experience.
“Nothing is gonna really get us off kilter,” Martin said. “Even if we get down a little bit. This team is not going to lose their head.”
On Friday Jan. 26, Timberview led Midlothian Heritage 26-14 at the half. The Wolves finished the game on a 28-0 run and secured a 63-26 victory. Chrishawn Coleman and Emilee Jones each scored 15 points.
“Basically, what happens to most teams we play, is that we push pace so much that people wear out,” Martin said. “We play at this pace all the time. So we’re used to it and we were able to make that push late in the third quarter.”
Timberview’s size and rebounding ability gave Midlothian Heritage some trouble, and the effective rebounding allowed the Wolves to get out on the fast break.
“I think the reason we like to rebound the ball so well is because that means now we get to go play offense,” Martin said with a smile. “We really have done a great job this year on the boards and that’s been a huge part of our success.”
What is it going to take for the Wolves to make it back to the state tournament? Martin said it’ll come down to execution and showcasing what they’ve been working on all season.
“Finishing shots and executing,” Martin said. “That’s our goal and our focus every day. We get plenty of looks, we got to finish ‘em.”
The Wolves have one more game until the playoffs begin, and they’ll focus on improving the “little things.” The Wolves defeated Mansfield Summit 79-30 on Tuesday and will finish the regular season at home against Arlington Seguin this Tuesday.
“We want to be extra sharp on the little stuff like base line out of bounds plays and sideline out of bounds plays,” Martin said. “You can get exactly what you want in a possession, which may be crucial in a playoff game. So it’s a lot of little things. On both ends of the floor.”
The bi-district round for Texas high school girls basketball will commence on Feb. 12, and Mansfield Timberview has already clinched the District 8-5A championship.
Editor’s note: This story originally published in the Star-Telegram’s eEdition on Wednesday.
This story was originally published January 31, 2024 at 5:00 AM.
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