Justin Northwest can’t summon magic in state semifinals loss

Justin Northwest trailed in both games during the Class 5A Region I tournament in Snyder last weekend before coming back to clinch its first boys basketball state appearance.

Despite efforts to make another rally, the Texans’ magical season came to an end Thursday night.

Fort Bend Marshall used a late second-quarter run to regain the lead for good as Northwest fell 82-59 in a Class 5A state semifinal game at the Alamodome.

Marshall (32-7) will meet Mansfield Timberview (31-7) at 3 p.m. Saturday for the 5A state championship.

The Texans (32-5) found themselves down 17-10 early in the game before sophomore guard Avery Anderson helped will their way back. His 3-point play gave Northwest a 21-19 lead with 5:37 in the second quarter.

But Marshall answered with a 17-3 run during the next four minutes.

Daquazemarr Wyche gave the Buffalos a 34-24 lead, and Tajzmel Sherman stole the inbound pass attempt and added two more to make it 36-24 with 1:02 in the half.

Marshall went up 49-34 after Sherman drained a 3-point shot from the left wing midway through the third quarter. The Buffalos led 52-40 after three periods.

The Texans got within 10 points in the fourth quarter, but no closer.

Anderson scored a team-high 23 points. Junior forward Jordan Keys added 12. Senior post Jay Am’Mons chipped in 10 points.

This story was originally published March 9, 2017 at 10:38 PM with the headline "Justin Northwest can’t summon magic in state semifinals loss."