Guerrero leads Harlandale with 16 points

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McCollum has been at its best under pressure during the District 29-4A.season, and that was never more true than last Friday at Harlandale.

The Cowboys (16-9, 6-1) won in double overtime against Memorial and in overtime against Kennedy. So McCollum was on familiar turf when Harlandale (16-10, 5-2) tied the score late in the game. It weathered the storm for a 75-68 victory.

“One of my assistant coaches made that point after the game,” McCollum coach Luke MacKay said. “We’ve played nothing but close games in our district. They’re used to the pressure. It was a close game into the second half, so I think it did help.”

The teams entered the game tied for second place in  District 29-4A. McCollum’s sixth-consecutive win vaulted it into second place while the Indians fell to third.

McCollum got some separation from Harlandale in the third quarter, when it outscored the Indians 25-13 to build a two-point halftime lead.

“It was a back-and-forth game except for the third quarter,” MacKay said, “when we wrested control from them a little bit. Our defense and rebounding were a little better. They have a high-potential scoring offense, so that was important.

“We just stuck to what we were doing (offensively), but we took better care of the ball. Their overall team speed is really phenomenal. It seems like they can be in multiple places at once.”

A rare four-point play from senior guard Nathan Martinez (15 points ) helped the Cowboys keep Harlandale at bay in the fourth quarter.

“They tied it up in the fourth quarter and we made a couple of free throws,” MacKay said. “They went small. They put out five little guys, but we were able to hold on.”

Harlandale scored 26 points in the quarter, but McCollum made its free throws down the stretch for the win.

“Joey Villarreal made some really big plays,” MacKay said. “Tre Johnson was outstanding all night. He had a double-double (in points and rebounds).”

A McCollum freshman also sparked the team’s finishing kick. Santiago Vasquez (10 points) converted a steal into a fast-break layup late in the game.

“Coming off the bench, he made a big impact,” MacKay said. “He’s a talented player and that was a big play when they were making a run. He was able to finish among three Harlandale guys.”

“Santiago scored 10 big points, but he also made some big defensive plays that helped us protect the lead.”

Senior Nathan Martinez led McCollum with 15 points. Villarreal scored 13 points for McCollum. Angel Loera and Cosmo Cantu contributed 12 points apiece. Johnson added 10 points to go with double-digit rebounds.

Senior Mando Guerrero led Harlandale with a 16-point outing. George Rodriguez produced 11 points and Joshua Rodriguez scored 10. Jesus Maltos added nine.

McCollum has an important test looming Tuesday at 6:30 p.m. The Cowboys will play host to first-place Floresville (11-11, 7-0). The Tigers’ size will present problems for McCollum.

“They have really good size,” MacKay said, “and because of that, they’re really a tough matchup for ourselves and the rest of the district.”

Floresville defeated the Cowboys 68-32 Dec. 20 in Floresville, which put a team that had been inconsistent with only flashes of its potential in the non-district season in the 29-4A lead.

“That probably was our worst game of the year,” MacKay admitted. “We really cracked under the pressure of our first district game. We were up 7-0, then they stole it and dunked it, and it just went downhill from there. “Now we’ve played a double-overtime game, an overtime game and played in that hostile environment at Harlandale. The guys have learned to deal with that kind of game. They don’t let it get to them too much.”

Harlandale will play host to rapidly improving Medina Valley (12-13, 3-4) Tuesday at 6:30 p.m.