Lake Travis boys beat Westlake to start District 26-6A play and continue torrid start

Something about the Westlake gym may bring out the best in Lake Travis guard Chas Biegel.

Nearly 11 months after helping the Cavs break a 17-game losing streak in the “Battle of the Lakes” series with a go-ahead layup in the final 10 seconds, Biegel was again crucial in helping Lake Travis to a win on the Chaps’ home floor Tuesday.

He hit four 3-pointers in the second half, finished with 16 points and was part of a defensive effort that frustrated Westlake most of the contest as the Cavs took a 68-56 win on the opening night of District 26-6A play at Westlake High School.

“In my head, I didn’t feel like I played well Saturday” in a loss in a tournament final, Biegel said. “I wanted to come out and make a statement and make sure we won.”

Biegel arguably had the shot of the game when Westlake seemed to have all the momentum.

The Chaps had rallied from a nine-point deficit to take their first lead of the contest midway through the third quarter at 35-34 after 10 straight points by Gavin Paull.

But Biegel immediately answered with his first 3-pointer to quickly damper the Westlake crowd, and a few moments later he hit another trey to put the Cavs ahead 43-37 going into the fourth.

There, they pulled away as Hudson Greer had nine points, Adrian Mathis tallied eight points and Biegel sank two more shots from behind the arc.

“You come in here for the first game of district and come out with a win — that’s huge,” Biegel said. “It’s good for the whole team and everyone’s confidence.”

The District 26-6A race will likely be a repeat of a year ago with Johnson, Lake Travis and Westlake battling it out at the top.

Whichever team goes 3-1 against the other two may have the best shot at the district title, though Lake Travis is going to be a very tough out after what they’ve shown the first month of the season.

It’s not surprising that the Cavs have started out a gaudy 14-1 — they were No. 4 in our area preseason poll, which in hindsight may have been too low — with their only loss being on a halfcourt buzzer-beater, but they’ve probably turned some heads around the state with what they’ve done.

Tuesday, they showed that their calling card is defense, with Greer, Biegel, Jayden Thomas and Hunter Duran — who all stand 6-feet-4 or taller — being able to guard every position on the floor.

“That allows us to rebound well because we can basically box anyone out,” said Duran, who also played a key role in Lake Travis’ 43-42 win last January. “It all starts on defense, which has been an emphasis, and that then leads to transition offense.”

The addition of Mathis has also been crucial for Lake Travis.

After spending last year playing in Italy, he joined a roster that more or less returned four starters.

More of a true guard than the rest of the Cavs, he adds another threat of being able to take defenders off the dribble for layups, which was something he did when Westlake got within 50-44 early in the fourth.

“It starts off the court,” said Mathis, who finished with 13 points, of the team’s early success. “You have to come together, and we’re friends as well as teammates.”

Outside of Paull, who was brilliant at times on the way to pouring in 31 points, which included hitting eight 3-pointers, Westlake (9-5, 0-1) struggled on offense.

The Chaps rode solid defense of their own and Paull to hang around, but Lake Travis dominated the fourth quarter and at one point led by 17.

“They’re a talented team, and I think their size affected us for a little while,” Westlake coach Robert Lucero said. “Some of the passing lanes get covered up by their size, because even if you have a good matchup, there’s still a big guy in your face.”

Greer finished with 22 points to lead the Cavs, whose new coach Brandon Shaver thinks has the potential for a special year.

“I told them in the locker room that we can be a great team,” Shaver said. “Not a good team, but a great team. … We knew they would throw a punch, and when they did our guys did a good job of taking it. Our guys just went back to doing our stuff and did an amazing job.”

This article originally appeared on Austin American-Statesman: Lake Travis boys pull away in fourth quarter to top Westlake