A Tale of Two Halves
Badgers dominate 3rd, 4th periods to sting Yellowjackets
By JEREMY HEATH Staff Writer

Left: Heath Cofield draws a foul with 53 seconds remaining in the third quarter on Tuesday night. Cofield, who scored a team-high 19 points, connected on both foul shots to give the Badgers a 33-30 lead on their way to a 52-46 win. Right: Warren Scott looks for an opening in the paint. Scott hit a 3-pointer and two foul shots in the Badgers' win.

With the Lampasas boys trailing Stephenville 22-19 at the half on Tuesday, Badger head coach Scott Harrelson made a few things clear at the intermission.

"He told us we needed to be more tough, more physical," senior guard Clay Tyner said. "He told us we needed to play better team defense, to play as a team and to play with more heart. He told us he believed in us."

Harrelson's belief was not misplaced. His Badgers dominated the third quarter and the first five minutes of the fourth before they bled the clock and secured a 52-46 win at Bozarth-Fowler Gymnasium.

LHS 52, SHS 46

Records Lampasas is 2-1, Stephenville is 2-2.

Impact

PHOTOS BY GABE WOLF

The Badgers rebounded from Friday night's 71-62 loss at the hands of Class 5A Austin Anderson.

Key Stat

LHS senior post Heath Cofield scored nine of his 19 points in the third quarter.

Key Play

With the game tied at 28 in the third quarter, Cofield registered a threepoint play, scoring from the field, drawing a foul and hitting the freebie to give the Badgers a 31-28 lead.

Up Next

Lampasas at Taylor, Tuesday at 8 p.m.

Senior post Heath Cofield scored nine of his team-high 19 points in the third quarter, and Tyner scored seven of his 10 in the fourth. The Badgers improved to 2-1 on the year and are scheduled to play at Taylor on Tuesday.

"I thought we played pretty well on defense in both halves, but offensively we played a lot better in the second half," Harrelson said. "I thought that third quarter was the best quarter we've played all year."

The Badgers, who trailed 19-14 midway through the second period, led by as many as 12 points, taking a 48-36 advantage with four minutes remaining in the game. At that point, Harrelson slowed the pace and milked the clock. Lampasas was able to munch some time on each possession, but turnovers allowed Stephenville to pull back within 51-46 in the waning seconds.

"I'm just trying to get them to relax and have fun with a 12-point lead, but to also realize they've got to put the dagger in," Harrelson said. "I think our kids beat a very good team tonight. That team was probably missing a few kids because of football, but we still beat a very good team."

Junior guard Heath Hopson, who scored 29 last Friday against Austin Anderson, went down early in the third quarter after landing wrong on his elbow. He missed part of the period but returned and finished with 11 points, which included a layup and two free throws that extended leads in the fourth quarter.

Senior guard Jacob Maceyra finished with six points, banking a 3- pointer off the glass in the first quarter and flushing one in the fourth. Maceyra also assisted on two treys, finding an open Tyner beyond the arc in the first and a wide open Warren Scott in the second.

The game was tied at 28-28 late in the third quarter before Cofield spurred a 9-2 Badgers run. With 1:28 left in the period, he converted a three-point play with a drive, a bucket and a successful foul shot.

With 53 seconds left in the third, Cofield drained two foul shots for a 33-30 lead, and on the opening possession of the fourth quarter Cofield turned a Maceyra pass into two points for a 37-30 Badger lead.