It’s not even Thanksgiving yet, but two metro boys basketball teams have already gotten really familiar with each other, no surprise considering their proximity.

For the second time in this young season, the Battle of Bell Street took place between Amarillo High and Randall in the final of the 2024 Amarillo National Bank Yellow City Classic on Wednesday morning. As close as those two schools are geographically, though, they don’t quite appear that close on the hardwood based on results.

Amarillo High, ranked No. 22 in Class 5A, pulled off another decisive win over Randall, ranked No. 3 in Class 4A. The Sandies took the lead early and were in control of the game most of the way, cruising to a 65-50 win at the Amarillo High Activity Center to claim the tournament championship.

It was the second time this season the Sandies (11-3) had beaten the Raiders (6-3) as each team has used the other as a gauge to see where things stand. Amarillo High had to like things a little better after all was said and done before heading into the Thanksgiving break.

“I wanted to take care of the basketball and value each possession better,” AHS coach Jason Pillion said. “I wanted us to show some competitive toughness and I thought our kids did a wonderful job of that. When you have five games in three days you’d better be tough, and I thought our kids did that.”

Amarillo High advanced to Wednesday’s finals with a dramatic win Tuesday. The Sandies beat crosstown (and District 3-5A) rival Tascosa at Tascosa’s gym 44-41, rallying late to escape with the win.

Randall had an easier time advancing on Tuesday. The Raiders dominated Dallas Roosevelt from the start and rolled to a 96-46 victory.

The Sandies and Raiders engaged in a much more competitive game in the final, which never quite turned into a rout but in which Amarillo High held the upper hand for most of the final three quarters.

“There was quality competition all three days ending against Amarillo High and it’s not how we wanted to end it but there were a lot of great flashes,” Randall coach Trevor Johnson said. “We want to play the best of the best to get us ready for the long run. Playing them is only going to make us better.”

It was a close game in the first quarter, as Amarillo High led 13-11 at the end of the quarter, which seemed to portend a competitive game. In the second quarter, though, the Sandies grabbed momentum and didn’t give it back.

Zach Brown scored 10 points in the second quarter as Amarillo High took a 33-21 halftime lead, forcing Randall to play catch-up. By the end of the third quarter, the Sandies led 54-33 and Randall never got closer than 14 in  the fourth quarter.

Joaquin Ortega was a big factor off the bench for the Sandies in the third quarter, leading the way with eight points. It marked two solid days of production for Amarillo High’s reserves, as Jax Richards came off the bench against Tascosa and hit the 3-point shot in the last minute which gave the Sandies the lead for good.

“We needed some of those inexperienced guys to grow up and I felt they did that this week,” Pillion said. “Between Jax Richards hitting that shot, Jett Walls giving us some great minutes and Joaquin continuing to produce, our bench was huge.”

Brown led Amarillo High with 16 points while Bristol Von Netzer had 13 and Joaquin Ortega added 13.

Timothy Perez was Randall’s only double-digit scorer against the Sandies with a game-high 17 points. That was a stark contrast from the win over Roosevelt, where four players were in double digits, led by Tayesen Combs with 24, Jaxon Toniolli with 22, Dawson Heider with 15 and Perez with 14.

“We did a lot of great things these first four games, but Amarillo High shows you what you really need to do,” Johnson said. “They really expose your flaws. I have a lot of respect for them.”

Tournament notes 

There was at least one familiar player to local basketball fans from out of town who was here for three days.

Prosper’s J’Den Shields is the son of Kyle Shields, who area fans might remember from his days playing for Palo Duro and West Texas A&M. The younger Shields was involved in one of the more exciting games in the tournament when Prosper met Amarillo High on Monday.

The Sandies needed to work to pull that out, as Brown made a layup with eight seconds left to give AHS a 51-49 victory.

There was also a familiar face as an official working the Amarillo High-Tascosa game, albeit from another sport.

John Doan, who retired as the Canyon baseball coach after leading the Eagles to the state semifinals last season, announced his intentions to work as an official, and was one of the three referees working AHS-Tascosa.

 

Amarillo National Bank Yellow City Classic scores

Monday’s Pool Games

Palo Duro 66, Canyon 60
Tascosa 79, Hereford 43
Randall 81, Ysleta 58
Wichita Falls Memorial 61, Caprock 26
Amarillo High 77, Joshua 28
Prosper 75, Dumas 41
Dallas Roosevelt 63, Canyon 58
Randall 71, Wichita Falls Memorial 54
Joshua 63, Dumas 46
Colleyville Heritage 80, Hereford 55
Caprock 42, Ysleta 39
Amarillo High 51, Prosper 49

Tuesday’s Pool Games

Palo Duro 64, Dallas Roosevelt 59
Tascosa 59, Colleyville Heritage 55
Wichita Falls Memorial 59, Ysleta 55
Amarillo High 44, Dumas 37
Randall 94, Caprock 42
Prosper 66, Joshua 47
Tuesday’s Bracket Games
Amarillo High 44, Tascosa 41
Randall 96, Dallas Roosevelt 46
Canyon 62, Joshua 38
Palo Duro 63, Wichita Falls Memorial 61
Prosper 70, Colleyville Heritage 57
Caprock 50, Hereford 47

Wednesday’s Games

Gold Championship 

Amarillo High 65, Randall 50

Gold Third Place

Tascosa 66, Dallas Roosevelt 58

Silver Championship

Prosper 76, Palo Duro 54

Silver Third Place

Colleyville Heritage 49, Wichita Falls Memorial 42

Bronze Championship

Canyon 45, Caprock 43

Bracket Game

Ysleta 61, Dumas 59