Liberty Hill knocks Round Rock from the ranks of the unbeaten in girls basketball
Liberty Hill impressed
Team of the week: Liberty Hill. The Panthers (9-0) beat Brenham 49-34 and then handed Round Rock (8-1) its first loss 45-33. The Panthers are No. 4 in the TGCA Class 5A state poll and are averaging 54 points per game while limiting opponents to 34. Liberty Hill has won all nine games by at least 10 points.
Round Rock Christian's Zamora has great week
Player of the week: Ava Zamora, senior, Round Rock Christian Academy. Zamora led the Crusaders to the championship of the Austin Waldorf Invitational as she scored 45 points in a 76-8 win over San Marcos Hill Country Christian, tallied 27 points in a 63-30 win over Austin Valor North and closed out her all tournament with 13 points as the Crusaders beat host Waldorf 37-31 for the championship. Zamora is averaging 23.8 points per game for the 6-0 Crusaders.
Around the area
Navarro lost its season opener to Connally, but have reeled off wins over Cedar Creek, Rouse, Elgin, Crockett and Valor South for their best early start in nearly three decades. The Vikings made their first playoff appearance last season in quite some time.
Thrall has made a quick transition from a successful volleyball season into basketball. It opened with a 51-36 loss to Class 3A Franklin, but since have beaten Class 4A Smithville 50-45 and Waco Riesel 62-37. Ashlyn Jarosek is averaging 14.3 points per game while CeCe Walker is averaging 10.6.
Liberty Hill rallied from a 12-9 first-quarter deficit to take a 25-21 halftime lead and went on with a 20-12 second-half scoring advantage to hand Class 6A Round Rock its first loss of the season 45-33. The Panthers improved to 9-0 and the Dragons dropped to 8-1.
Cedar Creek is off to a 5-3 start led by Keyaira Allen and Limuel Washington, who were both named all-tournament for the Eagles in the San Antonio Invitational.
More: At Hendrickson, it's about more than just wins or losses on the basketball court
Westlake has won six of its first eight games after beating highly-regarded College Station 53-32. Second-year head coach Vickie Benson is pleased with the Chaps' start. ... Rouse is 4-5 despite playing without two starters and own wins over Lampasas, Connally and Anderson. ... Hendrickson is reloading. The Hawks (5-3) have played a tough schedule; Vista Ridge is 5-3 as well after beating Hendrickson 50-40 Friday night and earlier beating Johnson 59-43.
Cedar Ridge is 5-6 to start the season as head coach Kevin Lewis has been struggling to keep a healthy lineup on the court due to illness and injuries. “We have had multiple kids out with COVID and strep infections, but as we get healthy, we are looking forward to district. Holiday break is coming at a good time,” he said.
In other games, Glenn raced past Lampasas 69-22 as Libby Lee scored 17 points while Somo Okolo added 15 and Lauren Taylor added 14. Round Rock Christian edged Veritas Academy 43-40 behind 14 points each by both Zamora and Grace Jones. ... Connally beat Lexington 42-38, while McNeil and Pflugerville were even after a quarter at 10-10 before the Mavericks used a 37-18 scoring run to explode for a 60-35 win. ... Stony Point used superior defense to limit East View to single-digit scoring in all four quarters as the Tigers prevailed 57-19.
Fab Fives
Class 6A
1. Round Rock 8-1
2. Westlake 7-2
3. Stony Point 7-2
4. Lake Travis 8-3
5. Vista Ridge 5-3
Class 5A
1. Liberty Hill 9-0
2. Glenn 7-1
3. Hays 6-3
4. Georgetown 5-3
5. Hendrickson 5-3
Class 4A/others
1. Round Rock Christian 6-0
2. Manor New Tech 4-0
3. Rockdale 5-0
4. Savio 4-1
5. Thrall 3-1
This week's top games
Tuesday
Ellison at Round Rock, noon
Cedar Creek at Liberty Hill, 1 p.m.
Vista Ridge at Lake Travis, 1 p.m.
Georgetown at McNeil, 1 p.m.
Lockhart at McCallum, 1 p.m.
Manor New Tech at McDade, 5 p.m.
This article originally appeared on Austin American-Statesman: Central Texas girls high school basketball season has started
