Marble Falls girls hoops gets hot start in win against Gatesville

The Marble Falls High School girls basketball team beat Gatesville 51-4 Dec. 13 where the Lady Mustangs showed the traits the program is known for.

“We played with intensity from the start,” head coach John Berkman said. “We rotated the best we have all year, we didn’t get lazy the entire game. We were intense and purposeful. Our defense turned into our offense.”

While the Lady Mustangs (10-6) are used to capitalizing on steals from their press and half-court defense, Berkman pointed out the players showed a commitment and patience in the half-court offense, too, from the beginning.

Their first possession of the game ended with senior guard Tea Rodriguez hitting a 3-pointer 30 seconds into the game, which demonstrated what Berkman was talking about and what was ahead for the shooter, who finished with 22 points thanks to hitting four 3-pointers in the first half. She also had 7 of Marble Falls’ 21 steals during the contest.

“It was good,” he said. “Our girls recognize that when someone is hot, keep getting her the ball. It gives the other players confidence, too.”

That’s because they know each is capable of having that same kind of game, he added. And when the Lady Mustangs see one of their teammates scoring that well, they will get her ball, too, the coach continued.

“You want it to be that on any given night, anyone of our players is ready to go — that’s the important thing for our girls to understand,” he said. “It may be somebody else’s turn to step up. They’ve played together for so long they know who is on.”

Berkman was especially pleased with the start of the contest following the 52-21 loss to Boerne High Dec. 9 in a contest he felt his players weren’t mentally ready to play.

“We talked about being being able to play at all times,” he said. “Our girls were determined to step up the intensity. It was a real good team effort.”

The Lady Mustangs welcome New Braunfels High at 8 p.m. Friday, Dec. 16, on senior night to Max Copeland Gym.

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