Matanzas boys basketball follows close loss to Cape Coral with two lopsided victories

Matanzas girls coach pleased with effort against St. Joseph.

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The Matanzas boys and girls basketball teams have both struggled this season, but the boys have been improving with four wins in their last six games, and girls coach Travis Boone has seen positive signs with his squad too.

Both teams lost close games at home on Jan. 4, the day before the Pirates hosted the Kiwanis Holiday Tournament. That would be the highlight of the week for the girls team, but the boys followed with victories on Jan. 5 and Jan. 6.

Against St. Joseph on Jan. 4, the Matanzas girls went on a 15-5 run to pull to within two at 35-33 entering the fourth quarter. But their lack of depth showed in the final eight minutes — they dressed just seven players — and they fell 54-36. Laila Krebs scored a team-high 12 points.

“I’m very proud of that effort,” first-year coach Travis Boone said. “It proved a lot to me as well as themselves that they can play without being at full strength.”

The Pirates were missing starting point guard Taylor Boone, who had rolled her ankle in practice earlier in the week, while some other players were still out of town for the holiday break, Travis Boone said. In the fourth quarter, the Pirates were visibly fatigued, he said.

The Matanzas girls (2-13) had some players back for the tournament but were overmatched against two talented teams, losing 60-22 to Atlantic Coast (11-1) and 51-14 to Jacksonville Raines (9-5).

The Matanzas boys (5-9) defeated Jacksonville Parker 67-52 on Jan. 5 at the Bernard Wilkes Classic at Jacksonville Ribault. The Pirates got balanced scoring with four players in double digits — Tariq Shakir 16 points, Henry Robinson Jr. and Rya’sir Jefferson 15 each and Jezeriah McCoy 10. Robinson also had 16 rebounds.

Returning home on Jan. 6 for the second day of the Kiwanis tournament, Matanzas trounced Ridgeview 79-47. Jefferson (30) and Robinson (25) combined for 55 points. The 6-foot-7 Robinson pulled down 15 rebounds.

On Jan. 4, the Pirates hosted Cape Coral, which arrived a day early for the tournament. The Seahawks (12-6) wound up winning three games in three days in Palm Coast, defeating Matanzas (56-51), Spruce Creek (60-42) and Jacksonville Westside (58-53).

Matanzas led Cape Coral 45-37 after three quarters, but the visitors went on an 18-4 run to go up 55-49 with 1:03 left. With about two minutes remaining, the Seahawks held the ball for nearly a minute, but the Pirates had committed just one team foul in the half to that point and had to foul four times before sending Cape Coral to the line.

When the Seahawks did shoot free throws, they struggled, hitting just 7 of 25 in the game. But the Pirates couldn't take advantage.

“We didn't hit shots, and we just kept turning the ball over,” Matanzas coach Henry Robinson Sr. said.

Robinson Jr., who scored a team-high 17 points, committed his fourth foul late in the third quarter and sat out the first half of the fourth quarter. 

 

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