San Marcos takes down Smithson Valley in home opener

The 2022-23 high school basketball season is officially underway for the San Marcos Rattlers.  The purple and white began their new campaign Tuesday night, defeating Smithson Valley 71-57.  Senior forward Malik Presley, led the way for the Rattlers scoring 23 points.

Although getting in foul trouble early, Presley combined for 17 points in the second half.  The San Marcos senior expressed his happiness after the game.

“I felt great, I was just glad to be back out there with my teammates,” Presley said.  “You know I had a really bad injury earlier in the season. You know, it’s just gonna be back on the floor with my brothers.”

Despite the dominant finish from the Rattlers, the purple and white got out to a slow start in the first half. Smithson Valley outscored the Rattlers 23-9 in the second quarter and had the momentum going into halftime.  Although San Marcos trailed 29-24 at halftime, head coach Dan Miller was pleased with the way his team handled the pressure.

“It kind of was a mirror of our fall, facing a lot of adversity and then finding a way to battle back,” Miller said. “And that’s where I’m really proud of the guys. We didn’t have our best first half and the other team played well. Smithson Valley played well in the first half. We found ourselves in a deficit at home and we came out of the locker room with a refocus and I was really proud of the way they locked in after that.”

After halftime, San Marcos had three players in double figures which included Malik Presley, Mateus Perkins, and Abel Trevino.  Coach Miller acknowledge Trevino and Perkins’ effort after the game, praising their importance to the team.

“I thought Abel Trevino stepped up big tonight,” Miller said.  “He hit maybe four [3-pointers] in the second-half and just you know all big ones and just you know he’s a senior leader and that’s what we’re going to need because you know at the end of the day you know our big three but we need other guys to step up on different nights. And tonight I thought it was really Abel and Mateus in the second half. Mateus in the second half, was more what we saw all fall.”

San Marcos will be back in action this weekend during its upcoming tournament.  Miller believes this will be a time to increase team chemistry and understanding everyone’s roles.

“I believe we’ll be going on the road for this tournament and just being together as a team,” Miller said. “Now this week just getting everyone into their roles a little bit more.”

The purple and white will return to the Snake Pit on Nov. 22, when they host Leander Rouse.  Miller urges the San Marcos community to support the team this year in hopes of defending home court.

“We have great fans, a good student section and a great team,” Miller said. “We just want to really protect our gym all year and we’re just going to need them [fans] to keep bringing that energy. We want to thank him for tonight.”