Just a flat out wow.
Those Texline and Nazareth fans snuggled into the Bushland High Gym Friday night expecting a nail-biter between two of the small school basketball powers and the 806 never saw it.
That’s because run a comb through the Texline Tornadoes performance during this Class 1A Division II Regional final and there were no tangles.
Texline raced out to a 17-2 lead over Nazareth five minutes into this one – 15 of the points on a combined five 3-pointers by Will Clay and Rett Wann – and led by 29 at halftime settling on an eye-opening 74-37 victory.
Texline (31-6) advances to the 1A Division II state semifinals with a quick turnaround playing defending 1A state champion Jayton (26-2) at 7 p.m. Monday in the Rip Griffin Center on the Lubbock Christian University campus.
Nazareth ends its strong season at 23-12.
“I’d say I have some pretty good players, that’s what I’d say about this one,” said an obviously delighted Texline coach Coby Beckner.
Nobody in attendance could argue against Beckner’s point.
Texline played at a fast, fast pace, shot lights out from beyond the arc canning 12 3-pointers, shared the ball more than Twitter (X) shares gossip, and its man-to-man defense sometimes switching into a 3/4 press tipped many passes and forced 24 turnovers out of Nazareth.
Fair or not to the respected storied tradition of Naz – five state titles since 2002 – this one was pretty much over after one quarter with Texline leading 21-5 and was out of reach by halftime at 43-14.
Texline took control when it blitzed Naz’s man defense with a flurry of five 3-pointers between the 5:16 to 3:01 mark of the first quarter owning a 17-2 lead.
Texline senior Will Clay and junior Rett Wann dazzling from long distance combining for the five 3-pointers.
That was a major story of the game with Clay finishing with five 3-points and a game-high 21 points, while Wann buried four treys and scored 14 points.
Clay and Wann were two of the Texline players scoring in double figures. Senior Joe Clay added 17 points putting on display some serious quickness getting to the basket and put on impressive passing skills throughout.
Trayven Wilson added hustle and eight points, while 6-6 junior Hadley Crisp was a pest and mis-match inside for Naz scoring six points.
Joe Clay said the Texline players are truly bonded together and love playing at a frantic pace.
“That’s just how we play,” said Joe Clay. “Like, we get in the gym when we play pick up and it is a fast-paced game that’s how we come out.
“This brotherhood that we have is the best. I played with my brother, Will, and Trayven since we were second graders. And then I played with some of the other ones since I was 6th grade. The chemistry is like, it’s not like we’re having to get set and put the ball over our heads and make sharp passes, it’s that we are playing with a flow.”
No doubt, the Texline offensive flow was impressive throughout, along with denying Nazareth an offensive flow by pressuring its guards and coming up with 24 turnovers.
For instance, Texline started the game 6-of-7 from the floor, while Naz opened 1-of-10 from the floor and finished the first half with four made baskets.
Senior Kayle Rogers was the Swifts lone player in double figures with 13 points.
“We did what needed to do,” Beckner said. “How we started the game was exactly how we needed to start the game. And to be honest with you how I expected us to start. But a 17-2 run? That was outside of what my expectations were. The score at halftime I looked up and I couldn’t believe it.”
Now, it’s on to Jayton for Texline.
On its way to a state championship last year Jayton knocked Texline out of the playoffs in the Region I finals 51-43.
“We did what we needed to do in this one,” Beckner said. “We couldn’t look ahead to Jayton. And that’s what I told Taylor (Schulte, Naz head coach) because of him. We had to focus on Naz. How stupid would it be to even look at Jayton and have Naz in front of you.”
Said Joe Clay: “We are a band of brothers and we are going out and playing our game and getting everybody their looks. We trust they are going to make it. If not we have four rebounders coming and board the heck out of it. Jayton will try to slow it down it a little bit. We just have to play our ball.”
“Our ball” Friday night was quite a sight by the Texline Tornadoes.