Basketball notebook: Joshua senior hits 2,000-point milestone
For years, basketball at Joshua wasn’t on anyone’s mind.
And even though the Owls will miss the postseason, they’re making headlines thanks to senior sharp-shooting guard Junior Loya. The school’s all-time leading scorer surpassed 2,000 career points Friday against Everman.
“In the game, I knew I needed nine and I was counting in my head,” Loya said. “When I got nine, it was a good feeling, but I wanted to continue to play my game and didn’t let anything get to me.”
Loya finished with 31 points, exceeding his season average of 28.
With only a Tuesday game left against playoff-bound Burleson Centennial, the Owls (13-16, 3-10 in District 8-5A) have their most wins since getting 19 in 2007-08.
“People have told me I should have moved to play on other good teams, but Joshua is my home and I respect all the people who are there for me,” Loya said. “Been on varsity since my freshman year and when coach [J.D.] Mayo came here, he changed me to be an all-around player.”
“I did everything he told me to do and the coaching staff has had a big impact. Coach always told me to be the best I can be and not try to be someone else.”
Outright champs
The boys regular season ends Tuesday, but North Crowley (4-6A), Coppell (7-6A), Fort Worth Dunbar (6-5A), Crowley (8-5A), Lancaster (14-5A) and Fort Worth Southwest (7-5A) have already locked up district titles.
Down to this
For many boys teams, there’s still plenty to be determined:
4-6A: Arlington Bowie (18-10, 9-4) at Weatherford (13-16, 5-8); Arlington Lamar (12-18, 5-8) at Arlington Sam Houston (10-15, 4-9). A win would give Weatherford its first berth since 2008. If the Kangaroos lose and Sam Houston wins, there is a three-way tie for fourth.
7-6A: Southlake Carroll (14-13, 8-3) at Hurst L.D. Bell (11-17, 5-6). Carroll has already locked up the second seed. A Bell win puts the Blue Raiders in the playoffs for the first time since 2011. A Bell loss drops them to a tie for fourth with idle Euless Trinity (15-12, 5-7).
8-6A: Cedar Hill (23-4, 9-2) at South Grand Prairie (21-8, 9-2); Duncanville (17-14, 5-6) at DeSoto (28-2, 10-1). A DeSoto win will secure the outright district title and No. 1 seed. Cedar Hill and SGP are tied for second; Duncanville is alone in fourth.
5-5A: Denton (16-11, 11-2) at Saginaw Boswell (16-14, 6-7); White Settlement Brewer (18-12, 8-5) at Saginaw Chisholm Trail (21-6, 12-1). Chisholm Trail can clinch the outright district title and No. 1 seed with a win or a Denton loss.
6-5A: FW Polytechnic (4-15, 4-7) at FW Eastern Hills (4-15, 1-10). The Poly Parrots own the season series with fourth-place Lake Dallas (9-14, 5-7 idle), so a win will punch Poly’s playoff ticket, otherwise Lake Dallas will head to its first postseason in 10 years.
14-5A: Red Oak (15-13, 7-8) at Arlington Seguin (16-13, 9-6); Ennis (1-28, 0-15) at Waxahachie (17-11, 8-7); Mansfield Legacy (9-18, 3-12) at Mansfield Lake Ridge (15-13, 9-6). Seguin, Lake Ridge and Waxahachie are fighting for final two playoff spots.
7-4A: Kennedale (20-12, 8-1) at Venus (16-16, 6-3); Godley (5-20, 3-6) at Midlothian Heritage (22-5, 8-1). Season series split between Kennedale and Heritage, who are tied for first place.
Lions seek final
The Arlington St. Paul’s Preparatory Academy girls (14-8) meet Granbury Cornerstone in a Texas Christian Athletic Fellowship Division II semifinal at 4:30 p.m. Friday at Aledo Trinity Christian.
Championship and third-place games at Aledo Trinity are Saturday.
Senior post Leann Lawson had a game-high 16 points and sophomore forward Haley Neuzil chipped in 10 as the Lions defeated Waco Parkview Christian 70-20 in a quarterfinal game on Feb. 11.
Neuzil leads the team with 11.3 points per game and junior Alexis Ahrens averages 7.1 rebounds.
This story was originally published February 15, 2016 at 4:41 PM with the headline "Basketball notebook: Joshua senior hits 2,000-point milestone."