Water Valley Rallies From 12-Point Deficit to Beat Robert Lee

ROBERT LEE, TX — Just when it looked like the game was slipping away, the Water Valley Wildcats showed exactly why they’re the No. 16-ranked basketball team in the state Friday in Robert Lee.

Trailing by 12 points in the final seconds of the third quarter, Water Valley roared back to steal a 42-38 win on the road against its biggest rival.

The Wildcats scored 17 straight points and didn’t allow Robert Lee to score in the fourth quarter until there was 1:53 remaining.

Landon Lacy led the way, knocking down four 3-pointers to finish with 18 points.

"It was a tough win, because things weren't going our way the first half," Water Valley head coach Matthew Mims said. "And you've got to give credit to (Robert Lee). It wasn't going our way just because we were doing bad things. They did a lot of good things, so you've got to give credit to the way Robert Lee plays and how hard they play. They really got us out of rhythm the first half.

"The second half, that was extremely gutsy the way we fought back and gave ourselves a chance. And the way we did it was with tough defense, and that allowed us to get in rhythm on offense after that."

Water Valley improved to 9-2 overall and 3-0 in District 11-1A, while Robert Lee fell to 11-6 and 2-1.

Robert Lee took a 20-14 lead into halftime, and the Steers extended the lead to as much as 34-22 on a 3-pointer by Brenner Sherwood in the last minute of the third quarter.

A drive by Branson Lacy pulled Water Valley to within 34-24 heading into the fourth quarter.

"At the very start (of the fourth quarter), we weren't too worried about the score just yet," Mims said. "At that point, we were still focused on just doing our thing, trying to get good shot after good shot, stop after stop, and just trying to string good possessions together. And we did a good enough job of that the first couple minutes that we never had to freak out about the score, and our boys do a great job of that."

The Wildcats quickly overcame the fourth-quarter deficit and took the lead when Landon Lacy hit a 3-pointer with about 4:50 to play as Water Valley's crowd went wild.

A fast-break layup by Landon, assisted by his brother Branson, pushed the lead to 37-34. Boston Wiese then made a difficult layup to give the Wildcats a 39-34 advantage with 2:59 left.

Robert Lee finally ended its scoring drought when freshman Bryson Hayes hit his fourth and final 3-pointer of the game to get the Steers within 39-37 with 1:53 to play.

Robert Lee's Max Garcia then made a free throw with 43 seconds remaining to make it a 39-38 game, but the Steers weren't able to score again.

Wiese swished a pair of free throws with 25 seconds left to help ice the game, and Branson Lacy sealed it when he knocked down another foul shot with nine seconds left.

Branson Lacy had seven points, seven rebounds and three assists as Water Valley's point guard. Rett Dickison chipped in eight points, and Brylan Naylor led the defense with three steals.

Robert Lee was led by Sherwood, who had 12 points, six rebounds, two assists and a steal. Hayes had 12 points and seven rebounds, while Garcia had four points, eight rebounds, three steals and a block.

It was the latest chapter in the rivalry between these two schools, who have had some memorable clashes, most recently when their football teams met in the state quarterfinals. That was also a close game before Water Valley pulled away down the stretch.

It's an intense rivalry, but also a respectful one.

"The boys know each other really well, and there's not hatred there," Mims said. "It's not that we want to beat these guys because we hate them. We want to beat these guys, because we know who we're fighting, and we know what we're fighting for in district, and they're 20 miles away. Sometimes even with friendship, you want to beat the guys you know as much as the guys you don't, so that kind of adds another layer to that."

Water Valley now has the upper hand in the district race, but Robert Lee will get a chance to even the score when the Steers travel to play the Wildcats on Feb. 3 in Water Valley.

Robert Lee will play its next game Tuesday at Blackwell, while Water Valley will host Coke County rival Bronte on Tuesday.

Water Valley 42, Robert Lee 38

Water Valley   7   7   10   18 — 42

Robert Lee   6   14   14   4 — 38

WATER VALLEY — Rett Dickison 8, Brylan Naylor 4, Landon Lacy 18, Branson Lacy 7, Boston Wiese 5. 

ROBERT LEE — Brenner Sherwood 12, Bryson Hayes 12, Dalton Abalos 6, Nate Samaniego 2, Brennan Hood 2, Max Garcia 4.