Brownfield takes 65-46 win over Muleshoe boys

MULESHOE - The Muleshoe boys basketball team always seems to play hard. At times, the Mules are reasonably effective.

But in basketball, if you don't make shots it becomes tough to give yourself a chance to win.

Brownfield also struggled at times, but the Cubs' pressure defense caused havoc and they made enough shots in their own right to register a 65-46 win over the Mules in a Class 3A District 3 contest on Monday.

The Cubs outworked the Mules (3-5, 0-2) at times, and their defensive pressure forced 22 turnovers - 15 coming in the opening half.

Six-foot-3 senior forward Pete Marroquin was a load for Muleshoe inside and finished with a game-high 19 points for Brownfield (8-4, 2-0 district).

"We came out pretty flat," coach Zayne McPherson said. "Muleshoe played hard, but we hurt them with the press."

Marroquin converted two free throws and an inside bucket to key a 10-0 run late in the half which put the Cubs in front 29-13. Brownfield then scored the first eight points of the second half to lead by 23, allowing it to weather a Mules rally that cut the difference to 14 with about three minutes to go.

"We let go of opportunities when we get them," Mules coach Humberto Gonzalez said. "Turnovers have been our Achilles heel all year."

Junior guard J.C. Carrillo added 15 points for the Cubs, who got scoring from nine players. Junior forward Brennen Davis was Muleshoe's lone double-digit scorer, finishing with 17 points.

"At halftime, we only had two (team) fouls, which says we were playing with discipline," Gonzalez said. "But it didn't lead to anything on offense. I think we could be pretty tough to beat if we could figure it out on offense."

Meantime, the Cubs are chasing favorites Lamesa and Littlefield in the district, and McPherson said his team has some things to clean up if it hopes to challenge for the title.

"We didn't shoot the ball great today, and we haven't all year," he said. "We've got to be able to score a little bit better to have a chance against those teams."

Brownfield 58, Muleshoe girls 20 - The district favorite Lady Cubs led 13-9 near the midway point of the second quarter, then went on an overwhelming 39-1 run that carried into the final stanza.

Junior guard Gabi Fields took over the game for Brownfield (11-1, 3-0), whose only loss this season came at Class 5A Amarillo High. She finished with 23 points, including a trio of 3-pointers.

The Lady Mules (7-7, 2-2), limited to eight field goals in the contest, were led by junior guard Natalie Ambriz with nine points. Muleshoe had won six of its previous seven outings to climb over the .500 mark after a 1-5 start.

In other games on Monday:

Farwell girls 69, Jayton 35 - Senior Presley Agee scored 28 points as the Lady Blue (9-6) posted a neutral-court win over the Lady Jaybirds at Lubbock Christian's Rip Griffin Arena.

Agee tallied nine points as Farwell opened a 24-11 lead at the quarter, then finished off her night with 14 in the final stanza.

Eight players scored for the Lady Blue, with sophomore Maryn Terry and freshman Zavayia Benoit each adding nine points off the bench. Junior Harley Chisum had 11 points for Jayton.

Farwell boys 49, Jayton 29 - At LCU, the Steers opened a 15-point halftime lead by outscoring the Jaybirds 13-4 in the second stanza en route to their 10th consecutive win.

Senior Jonathan Mora led Farwell (11-1) with 15 points while junior Grayson Waldrop notched 11. For Jayton, senior Tripp Scott scored 12 points.

In a game played on Saturday:

Farwell boys 62, Klondike 43 -At Lamesa, the Steers fell behind by eight at the quarter, but held the homestanding Cougars (3-4) to just seven points over the next two periods in pulling away.

"We kind of woke up," Farwell coach Shane Perkins said. "Having played on the road (the night before at Morton), I thought we were kind of dead-legged."

Mora scored 19 points for Farwell, while senior Leefe Actkinson added 15. Klondike was paced by 11 points each from junior Josh Arismendez and freshman Kolby Pepper, and 10 from junior Stephen Arismendez.