Faith Academy boys basketball beats Legacy Ranch

CAPTION: Faith Academy junior forward Seattle Hampton was one of the leaders in the third period that propelled the Flames to a win. Photo by Stennis Shotts

The Faith Academy of Marble Falls boys basketball team defeated Liberty Hill Legacy Ranch 54-35 Nov. 18.

“We accomplished that test,” head coach Zakk Revelle said. “Legacy Ranch runs their offense, and they run it well and they did a good job of being patient, so that ate up a lot of clock. We felt like we could have gotten out and scored a few more times, but kudos to them for sticking to their game plan. I was impressed.”  

The Flames took a 13-12 lead after the first quarter that went to 24-20 at the half.

During the break, assistant coach Malcolm Canada, who is in charge of the defense, addressed the Flames.

When they stepped back on the court, Faith outscored the Wranglers 17-1.

“Obviously that’s good,” Revelle said. “It doesn’t matter who you play. Giving up one point a quarter is always going to do you well. We were up 24-20 at halftime and 41-21 going into the fourth quarter. They scored 14 points in the fourth quarter, and nine of them came in the last minute when we made massive substitutions. They really only scored six points in about 14 minutes.”

He credited seniors Jase Marshall and Judah Phillips and junior Seattle Hampton, who are all returning starters, for the “good rhythm.”

“They played really well and had good minutes for us,” the coach said.

Revelle pointed out that Canada’s talk with the players at the intermission “was a mixture of both:” making scheme adjustments and challenging the Flames to pick up the defensive intensity.

“Our guys did a really good job of taking hard coaching and applying it,” he said. “When I say hard coaching, it’s not that they’re hearing something that they have to do that is hard. It’s not always easy to hear you’re not doing what you’re supposed to be doing. It’s a tough thing to do to be able to play a fun game like basketball and to learn a life lesson when you’re not doing the right thing and people hold you accountable. You should take heed of that and then do better. And they did.” 

While Revelle praised the Flames for their work on the court, he was equally complimentary of Canada’s work in the locker room, on the sideline and with a dry erase board.

“Coach Canada is an incredible coach,” he said. “Our star guys made some adjustments at halftime. Coach Canada does his job very well, and it showed. We’re pleased with the defensive effort for sure.”  

Overall, the Flames got much more from this road trip than just a victory, Revelle said.

“It’s hard to win, period,” he said. “It’s even harder to win on the road. But defense travels – that’s kind of our mindset with this group. We really feel like we can have a really good defensive group and that defense is going to turn into offense, and that’s what happened. When you’re getting stop after stop and your confidence is growing, and then you get a couple of breakout layups, and all of a sudden, your lead balloons from four to 20, other things start to just feel better.”

Faith welcomes Austin St. Dominic Savio at 5 p.m. Friday, Nov. 21, and will host its Thanksgiving Showcase Monday and Tuesday, Nov. 24-25. The Flames face Austin Hill Country at 4:30 p.m. Monday and Austin Regents at 3:30 p.m. Tuesday.

“A lot of credit to (the Wranglers),” Revelle said. “They’re a new school. (Head) coach (Rylan) Gerber is a really, really good coach. He comes from the Matt Jackson tree of coaching. Matt Jackson is at Lorena (for seven years). He’s an incredible coach as well and always has really good teams.”

CAPTION: Senior point guard Jase Marshall serves as the ideal floor general in pointing to spots he wants his teammates to move to in order to get great shots or to get a defensive stop. Photo by Stennis Shotts