Rattlers win final non-district game of season over United South

San Marcos got off to a hot start as the Rattlers defeated the Laredo United South Panthers 62-52.

Following a tough loss to St. Michaels last Tuesday, Head Coach Dan Miller wanted his team to be in the win column before the Rattlers started district play next Friday.

“It was important for us to get a win today,” Miller said. “It’s our final non-district game, and we wanted to close it out with a win. We wanted 20 non-district wins, but we came one game short with 19. But we are proud of the guys for those wins. That was a really good team that we played. I liked to see the finish a little bit cleaner than we did in the fourth quarter, but our guys were focused. And, it was a really good win.”

Zyair Jolivette was key in the Rattlers victory as the senior scored the first 11 points in the third quarter to put the Panthers chances at a comeback win at near zero.

For Jolivette, the victory puts the Rattlers in a good spot before the district opener against Clemens on Friday.

“It’s good to get a win before we start district play,” Jolivette said. “To get our energy and mentality up [is important]. It’s good to have that when we start district play.”

The Rattler defense helped San Marcos to an early advantage in the first quarter holding the Panthers to just eight points.

“We were playing great defense,” Miller said. “They didn’t score their first basket until about three minutes into the game. It’s exciting to build off our defense after we got torched at St. Michaels. To their credit, they were 13--25 from three, but it shows us the standard.”

Getting off to a good start has also been key for the Rattlers this entire season.

“Coach stresses to us to come out and start with intensity,” Jolivette said. “That is what we did.”

Junior guard Jett Upshaw concurred, adding that getting off to a good start can lead to a win.

“It’s always important to start off good,” Upshaw said. “It keeps the energy up throughout the entire game and it leads us to a win.”

United South found some offensive momentum in the second quarter scoring 13 points in the quarter, but the Rattler offense continued their unrelenting pace as San Marcos entered halftime with a 34-21 lead.

The Rattlers started off the third quarter with a 12-0 run with 11 being scored by Jolivette.

The scoring barrage was enough to put San Marcos firmly ahead entering the fourth quarter up 53-31.

Though Laredo United South attempted to make a comeback in the fourth quarter it wasn’t enough as the Rattlers took the victory 62-52.

The win improves San Marcos’ record to 19-6 overall.

The Rattlers will start district play on the road as San Marcos will take on the No. 15 ranked Clemens Buffaloes.

Tip-off for San Marcos vs Clemens starts at 7 p.m. Friday night in Schertz.

cmcwilliams@sanmarcosrecord.com Twitter: @ColtonBMc