SEALY — The Bellville High School boy’s basketball team traveled to Sealy High School Jan. 26 and outlasted the Tigers in overtime by a final score of 54-49. After Sealy led for most of the second half, the Brahmas found ways to claw back and sneak by with a win. “Just getting through the chaos and all the crowd noise,” said Bellville head boy’s basketball coach Mason Loiodice on the win. “Getting through all the uncomfortability.
We were a little shook up in the first half missing layups. Stuff we never miss. Just the killer mentality and the defense that we play.
We threw a little one-three-one in just to mix it up. We hadn’t had our big boy in lately and the kids just fought and finished the game. I’m proud of them.”
Brahmas guard Ealvin Starks hit big free throws near the end of the game to help secure the victory. “I just knew we had to win,” Starks said. “It was a lot of pressure.”
Sealy goes back to the drawing board with positive things to take from this game. “Shot mak- ing," first-year head coach Austin Kilman said on the differences in the game. “We didn’t get to the line at all. I think we shot two free throws. Only had two fouls in the second half. We didn’t make our shots. That’s a bad recipe.”
The game was tied at 23 a piece midway through the third quarter as it was a close game from the beginning with both teams trading punches. Sealy started to hit shots, with a bunch of them being from junior guard Kallan Hendry to take an eight- point lead at 33-25 late in the game. Bellville went on a run with great offense and defense to pull ahead 43-42 on a layup from senior Jacob Bilyeu. Hend- ry drove and hit a clutch floater in the middle of the paint for Sealy at the 12 second mark to force overtime.
Sealy made a put back layup and a three to start extra time and take a 49-44 advantage, then Bellville took over the game in the last two minutes with layups and crucial free throws from
Starks to pull away with the win at 54-49.
