By Joel Langton
The 830 Times
After snapping a 10-year playoff drought, the Comstock Panthers boys basketball team came up a basket short, falling to Balmorhea Bears 57-55 Tuesday night in the first round of the playoffs.
The Panthers rounded out the season after the loss with a 16-11 record and 8-4 in district play.
“We had a great group of seniors, Crider Hardin, David Isaac, Bryce Henderson, Brett Clark and Matthew Sanchez, who have really worked to build a stronger foundation for our athletic program,” said Comstock Boys Basketball Coach Lee Abbey.
A slow start, falling behind 24-7 initially, gave the Comstock five what proved to be an insurmountable mountain to climb.
“The Bears had a really hot hand initially and we had some easy misses,” Abbey said.
However, the Panthers came back to life in the second quarter, outscoring the Bears and pulling within 40-23 by the end of the half and by the end of the third they were within 5 points.
The last minute of action proved to be a doozie for the Panthers as they opened with a 2-point lead. However, Balmorhea ended up making four straight free throws to take a 2-point lead.
However, the Panthers weren’t out of it until they missed a 3-point shot with 2-seconds left.
“I hate that we lost this game but the bottom line is, this group of seniors led us to one of the best basketball seasons in Comstock history,” Abbey said.
Abbey is optimistic about the team’s future. “The underclassmen contributed all year to their team’s success,” Abbey said. “The bar is set and these freshmen, sophomores and juniors are ready to continue the success!”
Scoring leaders for the Panthers were Henderson with 29 points and Clark with 11 points. Top rebounders were Hardin with 7 rebounds and Henderson with 4 rebounds.
The writer can be reached at joelalangton@gmail.com .
