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Kaeden Crawford (10) defends against Stephenville earlier this season. Stephenville has defeated Graham, the Badgers’ first playoff opponent. JEFF LOWE | DISPATCH RECORD
Lampasas’ last district basketball game against Brownwood is canceled, and the Lions conceded second place in district to the Badgers. The two team had been in a close race fo second, and winter weath delayed the game for almo a week before it eventuall was canceled altogether.
Lampasas (18-4) is scheduled to play Graham in the bi-district playoffs, weather permitting, on Feb. 23 at 6 p.m. at the Brownwood Coliseum.
Brownwood will advanc to the playoffs as the district's third-place team.
Graham is 10-6, according to MaxPreps. The Steers average about 55 points per game offensively while allowing 52 per game. Lampasas averages almost 69 points per game, while allowing 55.
LHS head coach Aaron Nuckles said Graham will start five seniors. Unlike the Badgers, the Steers "tend to want to slow things down and control the flow" of the game. They "bounce back and forth from man and zone looks, and will extend out to some 3/4-court traps."
Two players stand out as their top threats.
“#15 Daniel Gilbertson is a guard, who we think is their best player,” Nuckles said. “#34 Javier Leija is their big man.”
Graham is coming off a 49-45 win over Iowa Park.
The Badgers and Steers have had a couple of opponents in common. Both teams lost to Glen Rose, but both of the Badgers’ losses to Glen Rose were by a closer margin than Graham’s 19-point loss to the Tigers. Graham also lost to Stephenville, a team the Badgers beat twice in district.
No. 8 Wichita Falls Hirschi beat Graham twice and clinched the District 5-4A title. The Huskies are the highest-ranked 4A team the Steers have faced this year.
The winner of the Graham-Lampasas bi-district matchup will face either Argyle or Fort Worth Western Hills.