High School Basketball

Katy continues hot run with win over Cinco Ranch

By Tyler Tyre, Sports Editor
Posted 12/20/22

“We have learned to play together as a team and we play really well that way,” Wold said. “We’re making that extra pass, giving it to the open player it just brings the energy level up for the entire team. It’s hard to play us when the whole team is in it together like that.”

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High School Basketball

Katy continues hot run with win over Cinco Ranch

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Katy has built a recipe for success this year.

A suffocating defense that presses all game, a team full of length and an offense that plays for one another and is willing to make the extra pass has led the Tigers to one of the best starts to the season in all of Houston.

The Tigers (19-1, 6-1) strong play continued Tuesday, as they beat a tough Cinco Ranch (16-4, 5-2) team 50-34, winning their 13th straight game and staying a game up in the District 19-6A standings as schools head into their winter breaks.

“They are just playing super well as a team,” said Katy head coach Shanna Marhofer. “It’s really an entire team effort and I think that makes it hard for others to scout against us. We don’t have that one stud, we have lots of kids that all play well and contribute. Everyone is touching the ball, everyone’s scoring and they’re all feeding off each other. Everyone is playing together, not playing selfish basketball and that’s how you win games. I preach ‘team above self,’ and they’re doing that and they’re playing with so much intensity.”

That intensity showed on Tuesday. The game started as a back and forth tight knit affair in the first quarter, with the teams tied as seven. But Katy’s pressure got to Cinco Ranch in the second quarter.

The Tigers implemented a full court trap to get the ball out of Aniya Foy’s hands and in the second quarter the pressure started working, as Cinco scored just four points in the quarter, while Katy scored 15 to increase their lead to 11 points going into halftime.

“Cinco Ranch is a good team but we knew that trapping Aniya and making her pass and be uncomfortable would be big for us,” said senior post Lyric Barr. “We pressed them and then we tried to make plays on those passes, keep our hands high and force turnovers and that defensive intensity was a big part of the win today.”

Offensively, the Tigers moved the ball and got every player involved and it made things difficult for the Cougar defense that was not able to hone in on stopping just one player.

Barr finished the game with 23 points while Nyla Wold had 11 points while two other players had five points each for the Tigers, as Katy pulled away in the second half and never allowed Cinco Ranch back into things.

“We have learned to play together as a team and we play really well that way,” Wold said. “We’re making that extra pass, giving it to the open player it just brings the energy level up for the entire team. It’s hard to play us when the whole team is in it together like that.”

The Tigers hold a one-game lead atop district heading into the winter break, and they know that It will be important to stay sharp jump straight back into things when they get back.

“I almost wish we didn’t have this break because the entire team is playing so well right now,” Marhofer said. “I just finished talking to them about how we have to treat this next week. They have seven days off, but you can’t take seven days off. They have to be working and holding each other accountable to that. We’ll only have two days of practice before our first game when we get back and we’ll have to get back in the swing of things fast. Hopefully we can keep this run going and keep doing exactly what we have been.”

District 19-6A

Katy 50, Cinco Ranch 34

Points: (K) Lyric Barr 23, Nyla Wold 11, Brainna Nelson 5, Ella Robinson 5, Ashlynn Alexander 3, Kaylea Marhofer 3;  (CR) Aniya Foy 18, Isabella Hart 4, Madison Lee 4, Sophie Bavan 4, Keeana Hickman 2, Lauren McCray 2;

Halftime: 28-28; 3-pointers: (T) Spencer 3, Rihanna De’Leon 2, Bella Riggan; (SL) Quintero 3, Jategaonkar; Records: (T) 12-4, 2-1; (SL) 6-7, 1-2;

Katy ISD, Katy, Cinco Ranch, Lyric Barr, sports, basketball