Junior Elias Thurman blocks a shot from the opposing team. The Tigers defeated Hallsville 64-58 taking a win on senior night.The senior night game for boys varsity basketball was on Feb. 10. The Tigers pulled through last minute after an intense close game for a win with 64-58.

The game kicked off with a ceremony dedicated to the team’s seniors with cheers from the crowd and support from families. When the game kicked off, both teams struggled to get the first point, though it was obvious they were equally matched in skill. Hallsville took the lead until the Tigers caught up, ending the first quarter ahead 8-1.

“I feel like we had some ups and downs and could have done better [with] defense, rebounds, all that,” senior Anton Coulter said. “We’ve got to get stronger and more physical.”

In the second quarter, Texas scored hoops back to back, leaving Hallsville trailing after. The Tigers took the lead by the end of the second quarter 28-22.

“We made a couple of mistakes but we pretty much gave it to them,” senior Lavon Brown said. “We’ve got to rebound better and made our free throws and play with the fundamentals.”

As the third quarter progressed, there was almost no change in Hallsville’s score. Only during the last 30 seconds did Hallsville’s score dramatically rise, leaving the Tigers behind. The quarter ended with Hallsville’s lead of 38-37.

The Tigers drastically improved their performance at the beginning of the fourth quarter, but Hallsville soon caught up. Hallsville made a 3-pointer shot that evened the score out to 57-57.

“It was a great game–hard and fun,” Brown said. “We made it all the way to the end and managed to make the free throws we needed to make.”

The game went into overtime as tensions rose between the teams. The Tigers gradually pulled ahead, and eventually took home the win with a final score of 64-58.

“It’s my last home game with my team and brothers,” Brown said. “This was one for my memories to know that we did this. We worked hard for this moment.”