The Mason High School boy's basketball team lost to Johnson City 48-25 January 31 and to Goldthwaite 91-44 January 28.
Though the Punchers didn't beat Johnson City, head coach Denis Cano said he can the players playing to the standard of 'all grit, no quit,' which is the team motto.
'Johnson City is probably the most complete game we've played all year,' he said. 'Everybody contributed to that win.
We played great defense, we ran our offense well. We won the 50-50 balls, we rebounded.'
The two teams played to an eight-eight tie after the first quarter and Johnson City led 24-19 at the half.
Cano said his message at the intermission was to continue what they had been doing and balance that without being overly aggressive.
'We have to be patient and take advantage of opportunities but not force the issue,' he said. 'We came out in the second half and scored right away off a play. We got a couple of stops.'
The Punchers didn't take unnecessary shots, but they couldn't turn defensive stops into offensive points.
'I've. been waiting for (Martinez),' Cano said. 'He lights it up in practice. The shots were falling. He played well. Everybody contributed.'
Defensively, Mason 'took stuff away' from Johnson City and limited sophomore guard Collin Corpus and freshman guard Jaydn Jenkins. Jenkins scored 26 points in the first matchup between the two programs, while Corpus had 7. In the rematch, Jenkins scored 11, while Corpus didn't score at all.
Mason seniors Chantz Reed and Kayden Hershman 'didn't give them anything in the inside,' the coach said.
'I attribute that to great defense,' he said. 'We got after them. We did a good job of moving our feet. We put it together. It was good. It was fun to watch. They got after it.'
Goldthwaite separated from the Punchers in the second quarter by scoring 28 points and in the third period when the Eagles dropped in 32.
'Goldthwaite is so much better than everybody,' Cano said. 'They had two guys we couldn't stop – they couldn't miss. We rebounded well. Everything they shot went in.'
Mason travels to play at San Saba Friday, February 7, and will welcome Junction Tuesday, Feburay 11. Cano said he believes the Punchers will continue to given it all they have.
'We have something to play for – for ourselves and for each other,' he said. 'I'm proud of my guys. They battle and play hard. The guys play really well. We've been playing well. the guys played hard all year. They lived up to 'All Grit, No Quit.' We battled, and I'm extremely proud of this group.'
