The #7 ranked Ropes Eagles faced off against the Forsan Buffaloes in the Area Round of the 2A Division 1 boys basketball playoffs this past Thursday at Lamesa High School, resulting in a dominant 69-50 Eagles win to secure the Area Championship.
Ropes came into the matchup ready to play, outscoring Forsan 15-4 in the first quarter, and from there they’d control the matchup to the finish and secure the win.
“Forsan is an excellent team. They are very well coached and disciplined, and we knew it was going to be a battle,” Eagles Head Basketball Coach Cameron Copley said. “Yesterday (Last Wednesday) was our best practice of the year, and that’s a testament to these kids and their work ethic and their drive to win in the playoffs. These kids have been here, done that, and they executed it. We took it to them early, only giving up four first quarter points. To me, that’s the difference in the game.”
The Eagles’ postseason experience showed in their standout performances, including Cutter Stumbo with 23 points behind four three-pointers made and ¾ free-throws made and Kade Franklin with 21 points behind 6/7 free throws made.
Other Eagles scorers included Kaden Riker with 11 points, Cason Kucel with 10 points behind two threepointers made and Branson Simental with three points.
And while only five play ers got on the scoresheet for Ropes, that doesn’t come close to conveying their un- selfish offense on the night, where they always seemed to make the extra pass and find the open man.
“That was our number one key going into this game,” Coach Copley said. “For- san flies around in their scramble matchup zone, and we thought if we just move the ball, we were going to get them in rotation, get their bigs closing out, and we were going to be able to get it in the paint that way. Our kids did an excellent job moving the ball and being aggressive.”
Coach Copley would also go on to praise the composure of his team amidst a passion-filled and often cha otic crowd, referencing his players’ previous postseason experience and how it paid off.
The win marks the Eagles’ 12th straight and improves them to 26-3 overall, advancing them to the Re- gional Semifinal Round of the playoffs.
They’ll face Wellington early in the week, who’s 23-10 overall and finished runners-up in 2A District 2.