HS Hoops: St. Thomas back in TAPPS Final Four

By Landan Kuhlmann landan@theleadernews.com

The St. Thomas Eagles’ basketball team has been at or near the top of the TAPPS Division I rankings all season long. And they’re looking to cement their status as the best the state has to offer in private school hoops.

Last weekend, the Eagles took down Dallas Parish Episcopal by a score of 55-25 in a TAPPS Division I regional final to move on the state semifinals. It is the first time St. Thomas (26-2) has reached the state’s final four since back-to-back appearances in 2016 and 2017.

St. Thomas will now set their sights on defending state champion Plano John Paul II (15-17) in the Division I state semifinal at 6 p.m. Friday.

It was a balanced scoring effort for the Eagles last weekend, with five different players scoring at least seven points in the victory.

Jake Pike paced St. Thomas with 11 points, while Jamey Beston scored nine points and grabbed eight rebounds. Aron Valentine also snagged 10 boards of his own, while, Shaffer Henderson had seven points and a team-high 11 rebounds.

Elsewhere in private school playoff action around the area, Lutheran North Academy saw their season come to an early end with a 75-59 loss to St. Francis Episcopal in a TAPPS Division III area round playoff. The Lions finished their 2022-2023 campaign with a 22-10 overall record.

In public school action, Booker T. Washington cruised past Scarborough 83-19 in their regular-season finale on Feb. 17, finishing the regular season 23-7

LANDAN KUHLMANN Editor

overall and 15-1 in District 21-4A and win their second consecutive district title.

Sophomore Sam Johnson had his first double-double of the season with 15 points and 11 rebounds for the Eagles, who were set to take on Taylor (17-15) – District 22-4A’s fourth-place finisher – in the bi-district playoffs Tuesday night.

Gabriel Alvarez scored 21 points to lead the Heights Bulldogs to a 55-46 win over Chavez in their regular season finale on Feb.

15. The Bulldogs (17-12) finished as District 18-6A’s second seed, and were slated to clash with Cy-Fair (2012) in the bi-district playoffs Monday night.

Girls Heights’ Lady Bulldogs had their season come to a close with a 73-37 loss to Houston Memorial in the bi-district playoffs last week, finishing their 2023 season with an 11-15 overall record.

The Waltrip Lady Rams also saw a stellar season come to a close last week, dropping a 70-27 decision at the hands of Fort Bend Willowridge on Feb. 14. The loss brought an end to a stellar season for Waltrip, which finished 15-8 overall and made the program’s first playoff appearance in four seasons.