By Moses Leos III
An emphatic dunk from sophomore Charles Bohannon capped a tale of two halves for the Hays Rebels in a 70-62 playoff win over the Westwood Warriors Tuesday at Bales Gym.
Three Rebels and three Warriors scored in double figures Tuesday. Bohannon led the Rebels with 20 points, while Westwood senior Alec Zess scored a game high 21 points.
Hays advances to play Klein Forest on Friday at Hearne High School. A time for Friday’s game has not been determined.
Sluggish play plagued the Rebels in the opening two quarters. On the opposite end, Westwood imposed their physicality in the paint.
The Warriors were guided by forward Emeka Ogbonna, who was a key component in crashing the boards on both sides of the court.
That advantage allowed Westwood to take a 15-13 lead after the first quarter. The Warriors led 36-30 at halftime.
Junior Jake Krafka said focusing on keeping Ogbonna out of the paint was the message at halftime. Head coach Sam Lunz stressed the need to pick up the intensity.
The Rebels responded in the third quarter by dialing up the defensive pressure.
Westwood struggled to adjust to a reinvigorated and tenacious Rebel defense. It led to several turnovers that the offense capitalized on.
“Once we realized they couldn’t handle that intensity, we stepped that up,” Bohannon said.
The Rebels went on to outscore Westwood 19-12 in the third frame, highlighted by a three-pointer from Krafka that gave Hays a 45-44 lead. The Rebels led 49-48 heading into the fourth quarter.
But it was Krafka’s three-pointer that breathed life back in to the Rebels. Hays kept the momentum, pressuring Westwood into turnovers and out-physicaling them in the paint.
Hays expanded its lead to 59-50 in the fourth quarter. The Rebels held off a late Westwood rally in the final minute, with Bohannon scoring a dunk as time expired to seal the deal for Hays.
The focus now turns to Friday’s game against state ranked Klein Forest. Lunz said refocusing on defense and rebounding are pivotal points.
“Klein Forest has size,” Lunz said. “We have to focus in on getting good defense and rebounding when we get the chance.”
