SAN ANTONIO — Hitchcock used a big fourth quarter to win big on Saturday, Mar. 11 in the 3A state championship game, 68-45.
The Bulldogs in doing so have captured their first state title in program history.
Childress did manage to jump out to a four point lead at times, in the opening quarter ahead of Hitchcock 6-2 and 8-4, but just as quickly the game turned on its head.
Before the first quarter had even ended, the Bulldogs took the lead for the first time in the game, heading into the second holding a two-point advantage, 12-10.
“We knew they were gonna be scrappy,” Hitchcock coach Christopher Jordan-Foster said in the post-game press conference. “They play pretty good defense, similar to our full-court man… we know coming into a game like that we have a size advantage, they’re gonna make extra effort to not give up easy, post points fast. So it might take it a little bit longer to get it inside, but I stressed before the game that we want a post touch.”
The Bobcats, playing in their first championship game since 1944, came out in the second with a sense of urgency wanting to capitalize on the opportunity to defeat 3A power Hitchcock, getting a 7-4 edge to open the quarter.
Even though the Bulldogs trailed just by one with 5:45 left to go in the first half, the end of the second would not demonstrate such a close game, as Hitchcock led big at the break 28-20.
The third quarter was when the dam began to break for Childress.
The Bobcats kept it tight, refusing to let up the momentum. Their four-point deficit could not be matched from earlier, however Childress pulled back within five at two different points in the third.
Hitchcock really pulled away in the closing quarter, steamrolling past the Bobcats 26-9 en route to a 68-45 win in the 3A state championship game.
A sophomore for the Bulldogs, Lloyd Jones III, came up huge for Hitchcock. Jones III crashed the board to the tune of 21 rebounds on both ends. The underclassman scored 14 in the championship, getting two each of assists, blocks and adding a steal.
The sophomore’s 21 rebounds accounted for almost half of Hitchcock’s in the entire game (45).
That, and another sophomore, Elijah Sherwood, scored 17 points, splitting it almost perfectly between the two halves (9/8).
But being able to send off his seniors in state championship-winning fashion, is huge for the soon-to-be-graduates and underclassmen as well.
The Hitchcock coach said in the post-game presser that their state title run is something he will never take for granted.
“The seniors that we have on the team, we’re able to keep them in, and they come in and getting experience, but just like last year, a lot of people told [us] ‘y’all will be back,’ couple times the next four years, this and that, I can’t take it for granted,” Coach Christopher Jordan-Foster said following his team’s state title win.
With the win on Saturday, Mar. 11, the Bulldogs have captured their first state championship in program history.
“We did it, we’re back,” Coach Jordan-Foster said in the post-game presser. “… just being at Hitchcock, playing at Hitchcock, coaching, having one of my kids play for Hitchcock… you know, this is a real feeling.”
Hitchcock finished as runner-up in the state game in 2003.
2004, and last season, saw the Bulldogs reach the state tournament but go no further.
Hitchcock is the lone program in Texas in 2023 to win a state championship that is not located in North Texas.
They end their season with a 31-7 record, having already finished a perfect 14-0 district season, capping it off with a perfect run through the playoffs en route to a 3A state championship win.
