Mineral Wells Area News

By DAVID MAY

Special to Mineral Wells Area News

Immanuel Christian made the most of their 500-mile trek to Mineral Wells, edging out Community Christian in a pair of City Gym games pitting two of Texas Christian Athletic Fellowship’s top teams.

The IC Warriors, which entered the weekend’s games ranked third in TCAF, held off No. 1 CCS on Friday, 59-52, then did the same Saturday, securing a 51-45 win.

The wins put “big school” Immanuel Christian in control of District 5 with a 6-0 mark while improving to 24-6 on the season. The CCS Warriors fell to 2-2 in district and 21-5 overall. The game results will certainly flip the TCAF rankings.

The results will play into post-season pairings, with Immanuel Christian looking to secure the top seed in the Division I (large schools) eight-team bracket and CCS looking to do the same in the eight-team District II bracket (smaller schools).

Friday night’s game was a fast and physical affair that saw CCS claw its way back into a game it trailed by 15 points midway through the second period. Community Christian would make runs to close the gap, only to see Immanuel Christian, behind the hot three-point shooting of Hector Perez (5-of-11 behind the arc, 19 total points), respond and again pad their lead.

CCS was down 18 points to begin the fourth period and began mounting a comeback, with their shots starting to fall while clamping down defensively, outscoring Immanuel Christian 17-6 in the final frame.

Playing with grit through an illness bug, senior guard Price Horton knocked down a three-pointer to bring CCS to within 58-50 with two minutes left. Horton’s sixth steal and a basket made it a six-point contest, 58-52, with under a minute remaining. The home team was unable to score again as time ran out.

IC’s Perez and CCS’s Jonathan Blackburn tied for leading scorer honors with 19 points each. Horton scored 12 points to go with six steals and four assists. Eighth-grader Josiah Marquez also reached double-figures with 10 points while pulling down seven rebounds. Blackburn had six boards.

Saturday’s game got off to a better start for CCS, which lead 12-9 after the first quarter. Immanuel Christian outscored CCS 31-21 over the next two periods for a 40-33 lead after three. CCS scored 12 in the final stanza, bit it proved not enough in a six-point loss.

Blackburn again led the CCS Warriors with another double-double outing, scoring 15 points to go with 13 rebounds. Braden Maness and Aiden Sipes had eight points apiece, with six points added by both Price Horton Marquez. David Blackburn scored two points. Horton recorded five assists and four steals.

CCS shot jut 19-of-47 from the floor (40%) and was 5-of-13 from the line (39%), meaning they left enough points on the floor that proved the difference in the tight contest.

Community Christian returns to action Tuesday, hosting Amarillo Collegiate Academy (3-11, 1-3) in District 5 action. CCS defeated ACA, 51-7, on their floor on Jan. 19. Tuesday’s game has a scheduled 6 p.m. tipoff.