For the Harlingen South Hawks boys basketball team, the path hasn’t been easy this season. But in times of adversity, the squad has held its head high and delivered when it mattered most.
Senior Noah Perez set the prime example by sinking the game-winning bucket against the Edinburg High Bobcats in their Class 6A bi-district contest on Tuesday. The Hawks won 42-41.
Perez, along with teammate Aaron Briones, had sustained injuries earlier in the game, but that didn’t stop Perez from sitting out in what could have been his final game.
“I told myself that I couldn’t give up on these guys and, even though I was hurt, I had to go back out there,” Perez said. “I was actually looking to draw the foul, but with the no call I ended up fading away and the shot went in.”
South head coach Brian Molina was pleased with what he saw from his team on Tuesday.
“There in the last possession, we had drawn up a play that didn’t fall through, but Noah did a good job of attacking the basket,” said Molina. “He read the pick and roll coming off of Brandon (Bennett), took the shot and, thankfully, he made it.”
With the victory, the Hawks advanced to the area round of the playoffs where they’ll host McAllen High at 7:30 p.m. on Friday.
The Hawks are actually familiar with the Bulldogs as they fell to them 55-39 very early in the season.
Molina said his team has grown a lot since then.
“With the type of teams we’ve faced in our district and earlier in the season, our guys are certainly battle tested,” said Molina. “We’re going to have to do a really good job of limiting their shots this time around and playing with confidence all the way through.”
Perez, meanwhile, is also confident the Hawks are a much better team than the last time they faced McHi.
“We know they’re big, they like to rebound and feed the ball inside so it’s going to be crucial to keep them off the boards,” he said. “CoachMolina preaches heavily about defense and for us to get the job done we’re going to have to do our part in getting stops when we need them.”
The Hawks will unfortunately be without Briones, who has been the premiere player for South all season. He injured his knee in Tuesday’s win. However, junior Chanz Love is expected to be the man to step in for Briones.
