Rattlers fall to New Braunfels on Senior Night in 67-45 defeat

San Marcos looks to keep playoff hopes with win against East Central to force tiebreak for fourth place

The Rattlers weren’t able to get going in the second half Friday night.

San Marcos fell 67-45 to New Braunfels after trailing by just six during the first half of play. The Unicorns were able to disrupt the Rattler’s ball movement and connection offensively while forcing turnovers, leading to a 38-22 advantage through the final 16 minutes of the game.

“Congratulations to New Braunfels on winning the district. They played really well [and] they shot really well. We didn’t shoot very well and with basketball at the end of the day, it’s a shot making game. To their credit, they made shots and their percentage was very high,” Head Coach Dan Miller said. “But I’m proud of our guys. It was senior night — I love all those guys plus our manager J.J. — Those five guys are near and dear to all of our coaches’ hearts and their teammates. They poured their blood, sweat and tears here in this gym. I know we didn’t come up with a win tonight, but I’m proud of their efforts and we have one more game and hopefully we can do everything we can to finish the season with a win.”

With it being senior night inside the Snake Pit, the Rattlers turned to senior guard Devin Patlan and senior forward Javen Puentes in their starting lineup. Patlan made his presence felt early, scoring eight points throughout the first quarter and hitting two threes in the process that helped the Rattlers jump out to an early 8-4 lead. San Marcos (21-13, 2-7) built their advantage up to 11-6 with just about two minutes left in the period, forcing New Braunfels to call a timeout. The Unicorns ended the quarter on a 7-0 run after implementing a full-court press, which gave them a 134-11 advantage heading into the second.

New Braunfels’ run continued over the first three minutes of the second, building up their lead to 18-13 while scoring in transition and from outside the arc. The Rattlers were able to get some of their own offense going in the latter half of the period, but the Unicorns kept pace scoring-wise to hold a 29-23 lead at the break.

“It was good to see Devin get out there and hit those shots, he’s a good shooter and a good player. In the second half I just thought we came out of the locker room and [the way we] started the first two minutes was okay. We scored, got a stop and then they just opened the floodgates with their shooting. They just hit shots and it’s about response,” Miller said. “When they hit a shot we have to play a little faster on offense and find something on that end. Instead, I think we kind of let that get to us a little bit. And then we never caught a good rhythm on offense in that third quarter. That’s really the difference in the game, that third quarter was big. I think we got outscored by 12 in that third quarter and kind of blew it open.”

San Marcos opened up the third trading buckets with New Braunfels, keeping pace in a 12-11 start where the Unicorns held a one-point advantage that built their lead to 41-34 midway through. Junior guard Cash Good was scoring off the dribble and getting to the rack during the stretch for San Marcos. New Braunfels extended their lead to 45-34 after hitting jumpers, and finished off the quarter on a 9-3 run that grew their lead up to 54-37 at the end of the quarter.

The Rattlers once again opened the quarter keeping pace with the Unicorns offensively, this time forcing New Braunfels to trail 11-10 in another offensive start that put the score at 64-45 with three minutes left. The Unicorns ended the game 3-0, milking clock and forcing misses from the Rattlers that sealed the game at 67-45. Despite a loss that had tough playoff implications for San Marcos, seniors Zyair Jolivette, Ory Williams as well as Patlan and Puentes all had a significant impact on their program.

“Our manager, J.J., He came here from Temple after his freshman year and he served as our manager and is just a teammate and a brother to these guys and does so many things behind the scenes. He loves the game, I love talking college basketball with him. He loves it so much. Javen Puentes, it’s his first year on varsity, but a four year Rattler,” Miller said. “Him and Devin, I’ll put them together as this is their first year on varsity — but they’re guys who came up with the traditional way. (They) played freshman basketball, then JV for two years and then varsity their senior year and stuck with it. Kids [don’t always] do that and to their credit, they did it. Zyair Jolivette scored a lot of big buckets last year on our playoff run and was a part of a lot of wins here. Unfortunately in this district season, not as many as he had hoped and we had hoped.

“Then the big man, Ory Williams. What can you say about Ory? He brings a smile to you. He does so many great things for our school (and) our community. You know, with his presence he was a really good basketball player for us and is going to do great at LSU. So love all five of those guys. At the end of the day, we’re in the human business and the people business, and those people will always be part of our lives.”

The Rattlers will return to the floor for their final game of the regular season on Feb. 13 against East Central at East Central High School at 7 p.m.

“Just play hard. Every possession guard every dribble. That’s just what we have to do and shots are either gonna fall or not. I’d like to see us become a confident shooting team,” Miller said. “It’s something I know next season we’re definitely going to have, but forget about next season right now. We have one game left. Let’s go embrace it and let’s find a way to win on the road. Whether we can get in the playoffs or not, let’s just do our best at the end of our season with a win.”

judemcclaren.unity @gmail.com Twitter: @judemcclaren