We wanted this one.
– Justin Kemp ’24
It’s been three years since a Ranger basketball squad won a playoff game. Three years of upsetting first-round losses, sending some of the most talented athletes in the program packing in their last game in a Rangers uniform.
The last time a Ranger basketball team hoisted a gold playoff ball, star players Caleb Steger and Michael Grant were still playing middle school basketball. Our very own senior backcourt of Justin Kemp and Hank Gramlich were both members of the freshman basketball team, looking up to the success of their upperclassmen mentors.
Now, in a middle school gym, the future stars of the program are watching the highlight plays from Caleb Steger and Michael Grant. The future backcourt responsible for leading the team to success, watching our current team trail-blaze their own path similar to that team from the 2020-2021 season.
At Carrolton Creekview Gym, Tuesday February 20th, the Rangers not only broke their playoff win drought but wrote the thrilling opening chapter to their team’s story.
We approached the game like any other and we weren’t nervous pregame – Robert Prager ’24
Game Summary
Preface
Jesuit came into this game the underdog as the 4th seed in District 7-6A, boasting a 22-9 record. On the other side, South Grand Prairie won their district and finished the regular season with a 29-6 record.
The SGP Warriors not only boasted multiple Division one recruits like Cameron Paul, a 3 star 6’7 guard, but also were highly ranked in the state sitting at the number 19 spot according to MaxPreps.
Dallas Jesuit on the other hand, boast a singular division one recruit in junior guard Caleb Steger, but have a plethora of offensive options as well as a stingy defense led by players like Hank Gramlich ’24. Jesuit entered the game ranked 107th in the state by MaxPreps.
1st Half
The opening moments of the game were chalk-full of fireworks as both teams shot 50% or above from the field for a combined 35 points in the first quarter. More specifcally, these two teams lit the court on fire from range, shooting a combined 9-12 from the three-point line.
Jesuit would end the opening quarter up 19-16 but the Warriors would rear back early in the second thanks to a 5 point run. SGP was able to not only outscore the Rangers but also out-rebound them thanks to heroics from junior guard Cameron Paul.
Heading into the locker rooms for half, Dallas Jesuit held a 1 point lead, a margin so slim that you could cut the tension within the gym with a butter knife.
Both teams were shooting at such a high-clip in that first quarter the game just had to calm down from there. – Point Guard Hank Gramlich ’24
2nd half
With both teams trading jabs in the first half, the third quarter offered both sides an opportunity to take a strong lead. For the majority of this quarter, it would be the Warriors with a lead, leading the Rangers for a cumulative 5 minutes. This burst from SGP would mostly be attributed to their 4 points off turnovers.
The Rangers however would shoot 58% from the field in the 3rd quarter as a whole, a barrage allowing them to retake the lead over the top-ranked SGP squad. In the closing moments of the 3rd quarter, both sides of the gym erupted in crowd noise as each side recognized the stakes of the final 8 minutes with the Rangers nursing a 6-point lead.
South Grand Prairie needed to make shots quickly and force turnovers in order to secure their spot in the next round. For the Rangers, the name of the game for the final 8 minutes would be playing keep away from the other side, especially due to the lack of a shot clock in Texas high school hoops.
However, the Rangers would kill plenty of clock time and force SGP to take errant shots. This poor shot selection from the Warriors resulted in an abysmal 38% shooting from the field, a stat that perfectly paints the picture of SGP’s struggle to come from behind.
Clutch free throws from Michael Grant ’25 and Hank Gramlich ’24 sealed the win for the Rangers despite a run of 3 consecutive made field goals from Dallas Baptist commit senior AJ Borden. Jesuit would come home with a massive win against the 19th ranked team in the state and secure their spot in the second round of the playoffs. Final score Jesuit 59 South Grand Prairie 53.
Analysis
Stats
It’s no secret, the Rangers were an underdog in this matchup. Not only did they use this narrative to their advantage, but they proved to be one of the most formidable teams in the DFW area.
The Rangers represented the epitome of selfless basketball as each starter on the team scored in the double digits and registered an assist, a reflection of their strength-in-numbers approach to last night’s game.
Most importantly for the Rangers, their scorers shot at a high clip, especially from range as Jesuit shot 54% from the field and 57% from range. For those unfamiliar with typical basketball statistics, these are incredibly efficient numbers.
In terms of individual statistics, underclassmen star Michael Grant ’25 led the Rangers in scoring with 16 points, and shared the team lead in rebounds with Tre Mergerson ’24 with 6 boards. Grant ’25 also had 4 monster blocks, with each greatly impacting the game. Veteran point guard Hank Gramlich ’24 led the team in assists as well as field goal percentage making 75% of his 4 shots, two of which were circus layups through contact.
I couldn’t be more proud of the boys they played lights out from start to finish. – Jesuit Basketball fan Cooper Cutler ’24
My Own Thoughts
Now for the subjective part. In my personal opinion, the Rangers are the hottest team in this year’s playoffs and I firmly believe they have a chance to make a cinderella run extending to the state tournament. This is especially true when the Rangers shoot as well as they did against South Grand Prairie.
My only concern for the Rangers would be facing a team whose main strength is rebounding the ball as Jesuit’s rebounding has seen a dip since the loss of big man Will Bronson ’24 to a hand injury. SGP was a weaker team in terms of rebounding and their strength was primarily forcing turnovers and scoring on the fast break, which Hank Gramlich ’24 and company completely neutralized.
I have to shout out Coach Hill and Coach Alexander’s coaching as both coaches faced a team more talented and not only out schemed the Warriors but also kept their players focused in the crunch time moments of the game. The Rangers have a premier coaching staff in the state of Texas and this continues to work to their advantage against some of the top talent in Texas.
Looking Ahead
The Rangers will face off against McKinney High this Friday at 7PM in the Denton Braswell gym. This second-round matchup presents another great opponent for the Rangers as the McKinney Lions are ranked 24th in the state and boast a 26-8 Record.
I encourage all Jesuit fans to make the trek out to Denton this Friday to support our Rangers or tune into the Jesuit Ranger Sports Network broadcast for live coverage.
Thank you for reading and stay tuned to The Roundup for more Rangers playoff basketball coverage.
