Mumford Rides Early Lead to 86-63 Class A Division I State Semifinal Win Over San Augustine

AUSTIN -- San Augustine fell in a deep hole early and spent the rest of the morning trying to dig its way out.

Undefeated Mumford scored 22 of the game's first 25 points and prevented San Augustine from ever getting closer than 12 points the rest of the game in the Mustangs' 86-63 Class A Division I state semifinal victory Friday at the Frank Erwin Center.

Mumford (39-0), which lost in last year's state championship game, faces Dallas Triple A Academy (27-5) in Saturday's 8:30 a.m. title bout.

San Augustine (23-7) outscored Mumford 38-37 in the second and third quarters, cutting Mumford's lead to 64-50 entering the fourth quarter. The Mustangs scored 12 of the period's first 14 points to take a 76-52 lead and put the game away.

"I think nerves got to us early," said San Augustine coach Tory Barnes. "They made shots. We made them turn it over the first quarter and we just missed shots. Shots we've been making all year, we didn't make those shots.

San Augustine missed several early point-blank shot attempts and made only one of its first six free-throw attempts. The Wolves' offensive inefficiency combined with Mumford's hot shooting to create the 22-3 hole.

Mumford 6-foot-5 junior Aubrie King had 20 points, 12 rebounds, and three steals, while 6-foot-3 sophomore LaKendrick Hyson had 20 points, nine rebounds, and three assists. Senior guard Josh Sustaita hit two first-quarter triples and went 5-for-9 from long range to finish with 19 points.

Mumford outscored San Augustine 49-25 in the first and fourth quarters to fuel the victory. Mumford coach Chris E. Sodek said his main concern was combating San Augustine's athleticism and pressure defense.

"Those guys are really quick, and no matter how much you simulate that in practice, our junior varsity can't crank up that amount of heat. We knew it was gonna be a battle going in," Sodek said. "They played Grapeland (in the regional finals) last Saturday and they beat them 92-77, and a whole bunch of that came off of Grapeland turning the ball over and getting quick rebounds off of quick shots. They did that to us, too, but I thought we did a pretty good job of handling the ball in the first quarter, and then again in the fourth quarter."

Trailing 47-28 entering the third quarter, San Augustine cut Mumford's lead to 14 points, but the Mustangs answered with back-to-back three-pointers. Tanner hit consecutive treys later in the quarter to fuel another San Augustine run that cut the deficit to 58-46, the closest the Wolves got in the game's final 26 1/2 minutes.

Mumford again responded, staging an 18-6 run during the next 7 1/2 minutes to ice the game.

Tanner, a senior guard, scored a game-high 25 points on 9-for-19 shooting. He also grabbed nine rebounds and four steals. San Augustine got 11 points and six rebounds from junior forward Dezmond Randle and 11 points and five boards from senior guard Aljanon Horton. Junior forward Jarvis Smith had nine points and five rebounds.

Mumford hit four first-quarter three-pointers and got a Hyson three-point play to fuel the 22-3 start. The Mustangs led 27-12 after one quarter and staged a 12-2 second-quarter run for a 43-19 advantage. San Augustine rallied a bit to finish the first half, but still trailed 47-28 at the break.

Mumford held San Augustine to 34.4 percent shooting, including 25 percent (6-for-24) from three-point range. The Mustangs shot 55.0 percent and made 45 percent (9-for-20) of their three-pointers. Mumford also won the glass, 43-32.

San Augustine's state semifinal appearance was the Wolves' first since 1973 and the second in school history.

"It's been great. The community has supported us 100 percent," Barnes said. "These kids have worked their butts off. It's been a special group of seniors that I've had this year."

Mumford enters Saturday's state championship with a 76-1 record since the start of last season. The Mustangs' only loss in that span was a 65-47 defeat against Clarksville in the 2012 Class A Division I state title game.

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Class A Division I
State Semifinal

Mumford 86, San Augustine 63

Frank Erwin Center, Austin

San Augustine -- 12 16 22 13 -- 63
Mumford -- 27 20 17 22 -- 86

San Augustine (23-7) -- Bobby Tanner 25, Aljanon Horton 11, Dezmond Randle 11, Jarvis Smith 9, JaCourtney Thomas 6, Jeremy Jenkins 1.
Mumford (39-0) -- LaKendric Hyson 20, Aubrie King 20, Josh Sustaita 19, Dion Mack 14, Willy Pompa 6, Seth Smitherman 4, Jamarcus Ricks 3.