After a slow but promising start to the season, the Rangers have caught fire this January. The non-district schedule for the rangers consisted of prominent opponents each week. The Rangers would drop a few games especially in the highly competitive Allen Holiday Invitational where they faced some of the most talented rosters in the DFW. This dry spell would not last very long as they would open up district play motivated and determined.
Lake Highlands
Following the Allen Invitational, the Ranger basketball squad would take on the number 13 team in the state in the Lake Highlands Wildcats. This Wildcats team would be lead by sophomore guard Tre Johnson who holds offers from power five programs such as Baylor and Kansas. Johnson would go for 23 points and a pair of highlight dunks. Big man and Roundup writer Grant Kostos ’22 would lead Jesuit’s effort with 7 points and 5 rebounds. The Rangers struggled to maintain possession with 15 total turnovers. Lake Highlands would take the game home winning 60-32. This loss would serve as the catalyst for the Jesuit Rangers, motivating them as they looked forward to the rest of district play. Over the next 4 games the squad would average 60 points per game, shooting 48.5% from the field.
Macarthur
The Rangers would go on to dominate Macarthur 62-27 with star senior Ryan McCormick going for 19 points and 6 rebounds. Sky Tschurr would also contribute 12 points while shooting 100%. The staunch Rangers defense would limit the opposing team’s offense to only shoot 32% from the field. Also the big men for the Rangers would dominant down low outscoring the Cardinals 34-6 in the paint. This impressive performance on both ends helped the rangers improve their conference record to 2-1.
Nimitz
Jesuit would go on the road next to face the Irving Nimitz Vikings. Three players would score in double digits in this decisive 59-33 victory for the Rangers. Ryan McCormick ’22 went for a thrilling double-double performance with 10 rebounds and 10 points. Big man Grant Kostos ’22 would also post an impressive performance going for 10 points, 5 rebounds, and a block. The main theme of this Jesuit victory would again be their control over the paint with an dominant 36 points in the key. Another imposing victory by Jesuit would make their conference record 3-1.
Berkner
We fast-forward to senior night in Walsh Gym as the Rangers would take on the Berkner Rams. Ryan McCormick ’22 would have a career night going for 23 points while shooting a ridiculous 72%, as well as pulling down a total of 7 rebounds. McCormick wouldn’t be the only senior to put on a thrilling performance as Ben Johnson ’22 would score 15 points. Following McCormick I was very impressed by the junior guard Dylan Gibbons’ 11 points and 5 assists stat-line. Gibbons has great ball skills and has a superb connection with star senior Ryan McCormick. This 59-41 win would make the Rangers season record 10-10 bringing the team back to a .500 record.
Irving
Fast-forward to a chilly Tuesday night at Irving High as the Rangers would take on the Irving High Tigers. This game would be key for the Rangers playoff hopes and effort to cement the 3rd seed in the district. Irving would the start the game hot connecting from three while the Rangers struggled to make shots. The Irving squad would be slowed down by Jesuit’s aggressive zone defense. The Jesuit offense would also catch fire thanks to senior Ben Johnson. Johnson would go for 19 points in the game with 13 in the first half. Jesuit is most successful when they maintain control of the paint on both ends and they definitely did tonight as they would outscore the Tigers 24-12 down low. The Rangers would take the game home with a 63-50 win that would give the Rangers a winning record for the first time since December.
Richardson
It’s not every year that you happen to be in the same district as the number one ranked team in the nation. In the nation, not the area and no, not in the state but the entire United States of America. I’m going to keep this recap short and focus on the impressive battle our guys put up against this vaunted roster. As talented as Richardson might be they definitely didn’t slow down star senior Ryan McCormick’s production. McCormick would score 16 points along with 8 rebounds while shooting 53%. Ben Johnson ’22 would also put up a respectable performance, scoring 16 points. The Rangers struggled to connect from deep but besides that they fought valiantly and we should all be proud of their performance against such a talented team. Final score would be 82-50 sending the Rangers back to .500.
Analysis
The Rangers sit at 11-11 with 7 games to go consisting solely of district opponents. Right now they stand around 3rd place in this district and aim to keep this spot. This will be no easy task as J.J. Pearce, Irving High, and Berkner all have talented rosters ready to upset any team that takes them lightly. I look to Coach Hill’s leadership as well as this senior heavy roster to continue to have success against this teams and maybe even pull off an upset on top-ranked Lake Highlands or even Richardson. If Seniors Ben Johnson and Ryan McCormick can continue to score at high levels this should be very possible. I’m also very excited to see the further development of Junior contributors Dylan Gibbons, Tai Kryger and Owen Berry as they will look to lead this squad next season. I predict the Rangers to go 6-1 for the rest of the season highlighted by an upset over Lake Highlands at Lake Highlands.
Thanks for reading and we hope to see you in Walsh Gym on January 25th as the Rangers take on the J.J. Pearce Mustangs at 7 PM.
