FORT WORTH — Keller has been without BYU signee Brooks Bahr for the duration of the postseason. He was sidelined before the playoffs began with a leg injury.
After losing one of its best players, Keller would have to find an average of 18.5 points per game, which Bahr provided in the regular season. It still had its leading scorer, junior Steven Ramirez, who averaged 20.9 points.
In Keller’s biggest game since it reached the state tournament in 2017, Ramirez showed the load hasn’t been too much for him to shoulder.
The 6-5 shooting guard led all scorers in Keller’s Class 6A Region I semifinal win over Lewisville (31-5) with 26 points. Keller (30-5) walked away with a 63-52 win.
“For me, it’s really cool because everyone’s getting to see what he’s capable of,” Keller head coach Zach Weir said. “I see it every day. That guy puts so much work into his game. He’s taking full advantage of this stage.”
After a relatively even first quarter, Keller took a 16-11 advantage by scoring five quick points in the final minute of the frame. Ramirez had 10 of his points in the first eight minutes.
The second quarter belonged to Lewisville, which began heating up from long range. It hit four 3-pointers in the second, led by small forward Micah Christmas with two off the bench. Lewisville led 31-28 at the half.
But two 3s by Ramirez in the third amid a 16-6 quarter for Keller gave it a comfortable nine-point lead heading into the fourth.
Lewisville cut it to 48-44 with under six minutes to play but struggled to stop Keller on the other end.
Junior forward AJ McPeters led Lewisville with 16 points in the loss. Lewisville came up short again of its first state tournament appearance.
Keller advances to the regional finals Saturday afternoon where it will seek to punch its ticket to San Antonio for just the second time in program history.
— Lia Assimakopolous
Rockwall advances to first regional final in school history
LUFKIN — It was a noteworthy night for the Rockwall boys basketball program.
Rockwall (21-14) beat Houston Nimitz 51-39 in the Class 6A Region II semifinal on Friday night at Panther Activity Center to advance to its first regional final in school history. On Saturday, Rockwall will play Mansfield Lake Ridge or Cypress Ranch in the 6A Region II final.
Down 20-18 at halftime, Rockwall outscored Nimitz 33-19 out of the locker room for the win. Freshman Mason Shephard led Rockwall with 17 points. Senior Corbin Brown scored 11 points and senior D’von Turner added 10.
Something of a dark horse this postseason, Rockwall entered the playoffs unranked in the Texas Association of Basketball Coaches state poll and finished behind Mesquite Horn and Rockwall-Heath in the District 10-6A race. But Rockwall — which beat Sachse, Pflugerville Weiss and Wylie East in playoff games ahead of Friday’s semifinal — is one win away from qualifying for the UIL state tournament next weekend in San Antonio.
— Myah Taylor
Even on an off night, undefeated Plano East rolls
FORT WORTH — Entering the Class 6A Region I tournament, there was one team to beat.
One team that was undefeated. One team that was nationally-ranked.
Plano East, the No. 1 team in the state and No. 3 in the nation, entered the weekend as the heavy favorite to advance out of the region and make the state tournament for the first time in 30 years. The other three teams likely needed to be on their best game and catch Plano East on an off night to bring an end to their historic run.
Early in Friday night’s game it seemed like Northwest Eaton (26-9) could. But even without playing its best, Plano East (37-0) did enough to advance to the regional finals with a 57-30 win.
“It’s awesome to be undefeated, have a 27-point win and feel like you didn’t play your best,” Plano East head coach Matt Wester said. “I’m trying to have more fun.”
Eaton started with an early lead before allowing East center DJ Hall to roll off nine first-quarter points to give his team a double-digit lead heading into the second quarter.
From there, most teams would’ve been out of it for good, but not Eaton. The team surged back in the second quarter, going on a 9-1 run to open the period and forcing Plano East to take a timeout when leading by just 20-17. Eaton was aggressive on defense and patient on offense. Senior Jaeden McCarthy had five points in the run.
But by late in the first half, Plano East began to show why it was such a heavy favorite entering the tournament. It extended its lead to 26-18 by the game’s midway point before going on a 16-0 run in the third to take a 20-point lead and put the game out of reach.
East’s 57 points were far below what it normally scores. Despite its offensive struggles, it was able to hold Eaton to just 12 second-half points.
Hall led East with 18 points while McCarthy led Eaton with eight.
Northwest Eaton’s season fell short of a state tournament appearance but goes down as the deepest postseason run in program history and a major turnaround from last year’s 13-17 finish.
Plano East advances to Saturday’s Class 6A Region I final where it’ll take on Keller, the No. 13 team in the state. If Plano East can win three more games, it’ll become the first undefeated state champion in the UIL’s highest classification since Duncanville in 2006-07.
— Lia Assimakopolous
Second-half surge lifts Lake Ridge
LUFKIN — Mansfield Lake Ridge scored 39 points in the second half to beat Cypress Ranch 68-56 in the Class 6A Region II semifinals on Friday night at Panther Activity Center.
Lake Ridge (31-6) moves on to play Rockwall (21-14) in the 6A Region II final on Saturday. Earlier this season, Lake Ridge beat Rockwall 73-47 in a tournament.
On Friday, Ahmare Rose had the performance of the night with a team-leading 24 points. Senior Kenny White had 13 points and junior Eze Nwakamma had 11 in Lake Ridge’s win.
Lake Ridge did not make the playoffs in 2023, but arose as one of the top teams in District 11-6A this year ahead of this deep postseason run.
— Myah Taylor
Find more high school sports coverage from The Dallas Morning News here.
