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(Photo/Alex Kielar) Ryan Waller holds the ball against a Bells defender Monday, Dec. 29 in the first half of the Bucks’ first game in the Eula Holiday Classic. The Bucks went 2-2 overall in the tournament. -
(Photo/Alex Kielar) Jamie Cruz goes up for a shot in the first half of the Bucks’ game against Bells to begin the Eula Holiday Classic, in which they lost their first two games and won their last two. -
(Photo/Alex Kielar) Douglas White puts up a shot in the first half against Bells during the Eula Tournament in which the Bucks lost 52-34, Monday, Dec. 29. The Bucks went on to finish 2-2 overall in the tournament. -
(Photo/Alex Kielar) Cooper Wimberley dribbles up court during the first half of the Bucks’ loss to Bells in their opening game of the Eula Tournament, before they went on to go 2-2 overall in the tournament. -
(Photo/Alex Kielar) Douglas White posts up in the paint against a Bells defender Monday, Dec. 29 to open up the Eula Holiday Classic. The Bucks went 2-2 in the tournament, closing it out with two wins.
The Breckenridge Buckaroos’ week at the Eula Holiday Classic was a tale of two halves, as they opened with losses to Bells (52-34) and Muenster (47-41) before surging back with dominant wins over Llano (68-38) and Abilene TLCA (75-21). After two cold-shooting performances to start the tournament, the Bucks regrouped and closed out the final day with their most efficient offensive stretches of the season.
The tournament began Monday, Dec. 29 with a 52-24 loss to Bells, where the Bucks struggled to find their rhythm offensively after a few days off for Christmas. Breckenridge fell behind 11-1 early and spent much of the first half trying to chip away, eventually tightening the margin to 23-15 before halftime. Joacim Fernandez carried much of the early scoring load, with help from Jaime Cruz, Douglas White at the line and Hudson Woodward.
Both teams opened the third quarter scoreless until Bells finally broke through with a three at the 6:14 mark, swinging momentum back their way. Breckenridge didn’t record a field goal in the second half until Woodward buried a corner three with 2:25 left in the third.
Conor Salazar followed with a steal and assist to Joseph Juneau to cut it to 34-21, but Bells continued to answer from the perimeter and kept the Bucks at arm’s length the rest of the way. White added a late layup, and Gavin Harrsion scored inside off a feed from Bry Armstrong in the final seconds.
“We didn’t shoot well in practice, we didn’t shoot well in the game,” head coach Brent Lucas said afterward. “We’ve got to be able to score, and that’s why we work on shooting so much. It’s hard to win when you score 38 points.”
Breckenridge returned to action the next day in the loser’s bracket against Muenster and nearly erased an 18-point deficit before falling 47-41. The Bucks opened well, taking early leads behind White, Cruz and a Ryan Waller three to go up 8-4. Muenster tied it late in the first and then used a run to start the second quarter to build a 19-8 advantage.
Fernandez broke the drought with a bucket, and White added an and-one late in the half, but the Hornets controlled the momentum and led 31-13 at the break.
The Bucks came out firing in the second half. White, Waller and Cruz combined for an 8-0 burst to cut it to 31-19 and Cruz added another jumper to keep the push going. White scored again, Salazar converted in transition and a Salazar three followed by a Cooper Wimberley basket made it 37-30.
Waller kept the pressure on with multiple scores, and Salazar drilled another three to make it 44-39. White scored under a minute left to trim it to 45-41, but the comeback ran out of time.
Breckenridge closed the tournament with two strong wins Wednesday, Dec. 31 at Clyde High School, starting with a 68-38 victory over Llano. Christian Flores opened the game with a three, Cruz added a three-point play and Wimberley knocked down a three as the Bucks built a 15-8 lead after one. They broke the game open in the second quarter behind baskets from White, Waller, Cruz and Fernandez, stretching the margin to 30-11 at halftime.
The offense stayed balanced throughout the third, highlighted by back-to-back threes from Juneau, and the Bucks continued to get contributions across the roster in the fourth as they pulled away.
The Bucks saved its most dominant performance for last, rolling past Abilene TLCA 75-21. The Bucks opened on a 7-0 run behind Flores, Waller and White, then blew the game open with a flurry of baskets from White and Waller. Woodward added a three, Fernandez scored inside and Breckenridge led 27-6 after one.
The margin continued to grow behind Fernandez, Salazar, Wimberley and Cruz as the Bucks took a 43-15 lead into halftime.
After the break, Waller and Cruz kept the offense rolling, White added multiple baskets and Cruz knocked down a three to push the lead to 58-20 after three. The fourth quarter featured strong minutes from the bench, with Armstrong and Harrison adding baskets to contribute alongside Salazar and Fernandez to close out the tournament on a high note.
