STANTON Permian boys basketball coach Steven Flores wanted the Panthers to have a sense of urgency against Midland High.
He watched his players battle their emotions and a very tough San Angelo Central team on Thursday, finishing with a two-point victory to clinch a spot in the Class 6A playoffs.
That set up a third meeting against the Bulldogs, the teams having split the previous two.
A victory by Midland High and the Panthers would be the No. 4 seed from District 2-6A.
Permian coming away with a victory would earn the No. 3 seed, still necessitating a trip to El Paso, but against the No. 2 team from District 1-6A.
Also on Flores’ mind was playing back-to-back games in less than 24 hours against a rested Midland High squad.
The Panthers quickly kicked Flores’ concerns and worries to the curb.
Leading by 10 after one quarter, Permian ran away to a 75-53 victory in a seeding game Friday at Stanton High School.
Race Herr scored 16 points to lead the Panthers (20-12), who will face El Paso Franklin at 6 p.m. Tuesday at Franklin High School.
Tabarie Jones added 14 points, Ryale Moses and Vari Beck each had 11 and Zykivion Bryant finished with 10.
Permian has won four straight heading into the postseason.
“Playing games back-to-back, you don’t know how they are going to react,” Flores said of his players. “I was pleased with their energy; we talked about that before the game, about how we needed to get off to a fast start against them.
“They’ve been playing well lately and we had a chance to get a lot of players in tonight, which is going to help us going into the playoffs.”
The bench players — Beck, Bryant, Jimmy Solis, Evan Garrett and J’Siah McCowan — held their own against the Bulldogs, keeping the Panthers’ lead in double digits throughout the contest.
They weren’t able to get on the court for any extended playing time against San Angelo Central because the game was so tight, with Permian eking out a 68-66 victory.
So Friday’s effort was a chance for them to shake off some rust and get some positive feedback heading into Tuesday’s playoff game.
“We’ll practice Monday and then get on the bus Tuesday and go play,” Flores said. “We’re excited to have the opportunity.
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