CARROLLTON — The matchup of two of the area’s top guards, Arianna Robinson of Plano East and Maci Pringle of Flower Mound, drew most of the pre-game attention, but it was a clutch performance from guard Brooklyn Gray that carried Flower Mound to a 50-44 victory in a Class 6A Division I bi-district playoff game Monday night at Hebron High.
“I felt a little like the underdog,” said Gray, a 5-7 junior. “Maci and Arianna are both great players. That was probably one of my best games ever.”
In addition to drawing the defensive assignment of guarding Robinson, Gray led Flower Mound in scoring with 21 points, including three 3-pointers. That was despite having to wear a splint on her wrist after falling to the floor while attempting a shot in the second period.
“Brooklyn did an amazing job,” said Flower Mound coach Sherika Nelson. “Arianna is going to get her points but Brooklyn made her earn them.”
High School Sports
Robinson, a 5-10 sophomore rated the Class of 2028 No. 1 recruit in Texas and No. 12 nationally, led all scorers with 30 points, four over her average. But she needed 25 shots.
Flower Mound (25-8), third-place finisher in District 5-6A and a playoff team for the fourth straight season, advanced to the area round to face South Grand Prairie. The Lady Jaguars went three rounds deep a season ago.
Plano East (28-8), No. 15 in the TABC 6A state rankings and champion of District 6-6A coming off a state semifinal appearance a year ago, saw its 14-game winning streak end.
Facing a 14-point deficit with 5:45 remaining, the Panthers reeled off 11 consecutive points to pull within three, 47-44, with 1:35 remaining, but could get no closer.
“I felt like the fourth quarter was 16 minutes, not eight,” said Nelson.
Pringle, a 6-1 junior with numerous college offers, ended the Plano East comeback with a basket off an offensive rebound with 1:20 remaining. Pringle led all rebounders with 15 rebounds in addition to 15 points, six under her season average.
Lorielei Ebert’s 10-foot jumper staked Flower Mound to its first lead with 2:15 remaining in the first quarter, a lead it maintained for the remainder of the game. Hailey Reed finished with eight points for Plano East, including its only 3-pointer.
Flower Mound won the last two previous meetings against Plano East when both were in the same district in 2023-24.
— Randy Jennings
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Denton Braswell 65, Plano 40: Denton Braswell’s depth stepped up to spur a 65-40 win over Plano in their playoff clash Monday at Frisco Centennial.
Three of the Lady Bengals’ starters picked up two fouls in the first half and were sidelined until the halftime break, including two of their top post players in the first quarter alone. UT-San Antonio signee Amaya McDonald, who often leads Braswell in scoring, was whistled for two fouls within the game’s first four minutes and sat for the remainder of the opening half.
A pair of reserves rose to the occasion in the 6A Division II bi-district round bout. The Lady Bengals’ top two scorers came off the bench as junior Demi Dangerfield finished with 17 points, including four 3-pointers, and sophomore Alexis Farris added 11.
“They played with poise,” Braswell coach Lisa Williams said of her reserves. “Those girls, that’s what they practice to do. When their number is called, you need to be ready. Don’t get out there and hurt us but do everything you can to help us.”
Braswell (25-6), ranked No. 16 in the state by the Texas Association of Basketball Coaches, advanced to face the winner of Tuesday’s bi-district game between Richardson Pearce (15-16) and Arlington Lamar (19-14).
The Lady Bengals got out to a hot-shooting start to quickly separate from the Lady Wildcats (16-14). Braswell led 20-9 through one quarter after Dangerfield knocked down two triples on her way to scoring seven points, and Farris added five. The lead grew to 35-17 by halftime as Farris finished the opening half with a team-high 11 points alongside nine from Dangerfield.
Dangerfield added two more triples in the third quarter to help keep the game out of reach.
“That’s my role,” Dangerfield said. “I stepped up and did my job when my team needed me most.”
Jade Williams scored 15 points to pace Plano.
Braswell has made a habit of winning playoff games under Lisa Williams, who took over the program ahead of the 2019-20 season. Williams’ teams have reached the postseason in each of her seven seasons and won six of their seven first-round games, including each of their last five in a row.
The Lady Bengals made their deepest playoff run in program history to the 6A regional final round in 2021-22 and reached the 6A Division II regional semifinals a season ago.
— John Fields, Denton Record-Chronicle
North Crowley 83, Keller Timber Creek 42: North Crowley, ranked No. 2 in the state, extended its winning streak to 20 games with a first-round playoff win in Class 6A Division I Region I. Sixteen wins during the streak have been by 10 or more points, including 11 victories by 20 or more.
North Crowley (28-4) advanced to play El Paso Franklin, which beat Odessa Permian on Monday. There was only one other state-ranked team in North Crowley’s region, and that was No. 15 Plano East, which lost to Flower Mound on Monday.
Denton Ryan 51, Granbury 19: Reigning 5A Division I state champion Denton Ryan won its 13th straight game and improved to 32-4 on the season.
Denton Ryan has won by an average of 35.2 points during its winning streak. Its only wins by fewer than 20 points during the streak were an eight-point victory against state-ranked Argyle on Jan. 13 and a seven-point overtime win over Argyle on Feb. 6.
Lincoln 82, Venus 27: Old Dominion signee Ar’Jayla Elder scored 16 points as the reigning 4A Division II state champion opened its title defense with an easy victory.
Lincoln (24-8) extended its winning streak to 14 games after racing to a 47-13 halftime lead. Lanae Dallas scored 15 for Lincoln and North Texas signee Bralylah Miller added 10 points as Lincoln began its quest for its fifth state title.
Trophy Club Byron Nelson 52, Fort Worth Boswell 46: There will be a new state champion in 6A Division II after Byron Nelson, the third-place team from District 4-6A, beat reigning champion Boswell in the first round. Byron Nelson led 32-26 at halftime and 41-31 going into the fourth quarter.
South Grand Prairie 41, Richardson 26: Janae Johnson scored 19 points as District 8-6A champion SGP won its playoff opener.
South Grand Prairie (22-12) advanced to an area-round matchup with Flower Mound, which beat state No. 15-ranked Plano East 50-44 on Monday. SGP has made several deep playoff runs in recent years, reaching the state semifinals for the first time ever in 2021 and finishing as the 6A state runner-up in 2022 and 2024.
Frisco Wakeland 85, Frisco Liberty 36: Charlotte Cavin had 31 points, six rebounds, three assists and five steals to lead the state’s 13th-ranked 5A team to the first-round win.
Wakeland (31-5) has won 11 in a row, and five players combined to make 11 3-pointers. Kaylei Thornton had 20 points and 12 rebounds for her 13th double-double of the season.
Argyle 88, Saginaw 22: Wrigley Green scored a team-high 16 points to pace four players in double figures as the state’s fifth-ranked 5A team cruised to a first-round playoff win.
Argyle (29-5) advanced to play Mansfield Summit at 7:30 p.m. Thursday at Saginaw. Aoife Journagan scored 14 points for Argyle, Emma King scored 13 and Lexi Ehrhardt added 10 points.
Mansfield Summit 100, Fort Worth South Hills 13: Summit set a season high for points, breaking 80 for the first time.
Frisco Heritage 68, Highland Park 44: The area’s ninth-ranked 5A team eliminated a Highland Park team that was state-ranked and area-ranked for much of the season. Heritage led 28-4 at halftime.
Lovejoy 38, Mount Pleasant 31: Tatum Novicke scored 20 points as Lovejoy won its 5A Division II bi-district game. Lovejoy (25-9) led 23-15 at halftime and 29-22 going into the fourth quarter.
Prosper Richland 83, Uplift North Hills 20: First-year school Richland earned the first playoff win in school history with a blowout in the 4A Division I bracket as Lauryn Williams scored 18 points and Emmy Privatsky added 14. Richland turned the game into a rout quickly, leading 37-4 after the first quarter.
It was the 27th win in a row for Richland (32-4), which hasn’t lost since Nov. 21. Richland has had only two games decided by fewer than 10 points during the winning streak.
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