Tatum Boys Top Henderson In First District 19-4A Game + Lady Eagles Continue Roll

HENDERSON -- Tatum got its turn to start District 19-4A play Tuesday and didn't disappoint.

The Eagles, ranked 19th in the latest Texas Association of Basketball Coaches' Class 4A poll, moved to 1-0 in the league thanks in large part to big nights from starting guards Corey Lee and Jalan Horne in a 61-36 victory at Henderson.

"We knew it was going to be tough coming over here," head coach Layne Boxell said. "We just tried to focus on winning each quarter. We didn't always do that, but we just wanted to make sure we gave every possession and every quarter the same focus. This was our first district game and we knew that anything we did before this didn't count. We really wanted to execute for 32 minutes."

Tatum (19-7) grabbed a share of the district lead with Center, which simultaneously earned a 14-point home win against Carthage in its own first league game. The Lions (10-14, 1-1) fell half a game behind the two early leaders in the five-team grouping.

Lee, who scored a game-best 18 points, connected on his first of two 3-point baskets to help the Eagles gain a multiple-possession lead for the second and final time at the 5:50 mark of the first quarter. His long range shot started an 11-3 run to close the period in front, 15-6.

A 15-6 lead despite shooting 0-for-4 from the free throw line during the run en route to a 4-for-10 night, the only glaring weakness of the performance. K.J. Boyd was the only Eagle to convert.

Horne scored twice from behind the arc in the first quarter to fuel the run and hit two more triples the next period. He scored a fifth trey in the fourth quarter to cap a 17-point night with just one basket in the lane.

In total, Tatum made seven of its eight 3-pointers in the first half and held a 28-16 lead at the break.

Da'Calen Hicks scored all 11 of his points in the second half to lead the team during the segment while Henderson never got inside 10 points of the lead.

The Lions trailed 41-31 after three quarters.

Hicks made it a double-digit lead for a final time on the first possession of the fourth quarter while drawing a foul. Tatum went on to outscore the opposition 20-5.

"Jalan was excited to get back out there," Boxell said. "He had to miss about a game and a half with an injury, so this was his first time to be out there in a week. You could tell he was ready to go. Then Da'Calen has been a leader for us all year. He kind of gets going when we need him the most. When we're stagnant or we've had a drought. He's done this all year long."

Kevie Rose and La'Kendrick VanZandt both scored 12 points to tie for Henderson's best individual point total. Rose scored nine of his points in the second half.

Tatum won the battle on the boards 25-22, highlighted by a 13-5 edge in offensive rebounds.

The Eagles also recorded eight steals to the Lions' two. Tatum only committed five turnovers and recorded seven assists in the same span.

Henderson will be idle Friday and resumes district competition next Tuesday at home against Carthage.

Tatum hosts Carthage on Friday.

"It's the way you want to start," Boxell said. "It's a long district and we've got a lot of good teams. Any time you can get a win on the road, it's big. We know we've still got a lot of work ahead of us."

No. 19 Tatum 61, Henderson 36

District 19-4A
At Henderson High School

Tatum               15    13    13   20     --    62
Henderson          6    10    15     5      --   64
TATUM (19-7, 1-0) -- Corey Lee 18, Jalan Horne 17, Da'Calen Hicks 11, K.J. Boyd 9, Stephen Marshall 4, Jordan Smith 2.
HENDERSON (10-14, 1-1) -- Kevie Rose 12, La'Kendrick VanZandt 12, Tre Boone 7, Tre Hall 3, Tyrek Blanton 2.
THREE-POINT GOALS -- Tatum: Horne (5), Lee (2), Hicks. Henderson: Boone, VanZandt.

Lady Eagles Shine Without Injured Forward

HENDERSON -- The Lady Eagles extended their current winning streak to four games despite missing a key piece Tuesday in forward Ro'Nisha Simpson-Byrdsong with a 69-36 win over Henderson in District 19-4A competition.

BriAnna Mitchell's 19 points and eight rebounds led Tatum. She also was one of five players to record at least three steals for the winning team, tied for the lead with four.

"I told them that defense would win this game," Lady Eagles head coach Patricia Nelson said. "Defense and free throws. We didn't make free throws. I'm pretty mad about that because we practice on free throws for 20 minutes yesterday, but, other than that, we played good defense and blocked out."

Nelson's squad shot 4-for-15 from the line.

Tatum (21-2, 3-0) threw almost exclusively zone defense at Henderson (2-1 in District 19-4A). The payout was a 32-29 loss in total rebounds to a taller Lady Lions squad, but a six board edge on its defensive side of the court. If that wasn't enough, forcing 17 steals as part of 29 turnovers was.

Mitchell's 3-pointer gave the Lady Eagles a permanent lead, 4-3, at the 5:33 mark of the first quarter. It was the start of a 16-4 run to close the frame.

The lead grew each quarter for the Texas Association of Basketball Coaches' No. 5 Class 4A team.

Serena Gipson and Jada Shans joined Mitchell in double digits with 17 and 10 points, respectively.

Nakia McElhanon put up a team-best 10 points for Henderson.

The Lady Lions will be idle Friday and host Carthage next week. Tatum hosts Carthage on Friday.

"Considering we lost here last year in overtime, I thought we played hard and together," Nelson said, laughing. "With free throws, I'd have given us an A-plus. I guess I'd give us maybe a B-minus."

No. 5 Tatum 69, Henderson 36

District 19-4A
At Henderson High School

Tatum               17    14    21   17     --    69
Henderson          7     7    13     9      --   36
TATUM -- BriAnna Mitchell 19, Serena Gipson 17, Jada Shans 10, Alexis Freeney 8, Destiny Hicks 8, Diamond Sammons 3, Allison 2, Brown 2.
HENDERSON -- Nakia McElhanon 10, Ke'Lanya Ballard 7, Tamariyah Dixon 7, Joy Williams 7, Malisha Pegues 2, Jessica VanZandt 2, Star Hill 1.
THREE-POINT GOALS -- Tatum: Gipson (4), Mitchell (3), Freeney. Henderson: Ballard.