Ozona girls basketball advances in playoffs, coach Jerry McSherry hits 700 wins
Ozona girls basketball’s Aaliyah Renteria is not the flashiest player, but she is a crucial piece for the team.
Facing a Ballinger team with two scorers averaging double digits, Renteria’s defense, rebounding and physical post presence were key in the Lady Lions’ 40-29 win in the bi-district round at San Angelo Central High School’s Babe Dirdickson Gym on Monday, Feb. 16.
Renteria finished with a double-double, leading the team with 13 points and 15 rebounds.
“She does all the dirty work and usually ends up having to guard the biggest player on the other team,” Ozona girls basketball coach Jerry McSherry said. “So, she doesn’t get a lot of looks because of that. But tonight, she was able to take advantage of their smaller post players, and it worked out well for us.”
The junior’s moment to shine came in the fourth quarter. After the Lady Cats engineered a run to bring the game to within six points, she fought for position under the basket and took a hard foul on a shot attempt. She stepped to the foul line, looking to snatch the momentum back from Ballinger.
“She’s really improved on her free throws,” McSherry said. “That was kind of one of her weaknesses last year, and this is year we talked about that. You’re gonna get fouled. You’ve got to go to the line. You’re going to have to make them, you’ve got to work hard at it. So, she works extra hard on her free throws.”
Renteria sank both attempts to help seal the win and finished the game going 5-of-8 from the line.
Big moments are nothing new for the junior forward. She played an important role on last year’s team that went three rounds deep in the postseason and finished with a 30-8 record. But Renteria had big shoes to fill after last year’s All-West Texas Defensive Player of the Year, Kelyn Gass, graduated.
“With (Gass) gone, we needed to step up more,” Renteria said. “Especially me as a post, I needed to become more of a scorer, trying to be an all-around player like everything (Gass) was doing.”
Some of the momentum Renteria wanted to bring into her junior season was derailed by an injury that kept her on the bench for a big part of the season. McSherry said he was confident she would give the team a boost heading into the playoffs.
“It was kind of hard coming back and getting into rhythm,” Renteria said. “But I am happy to be back, trying to get back to my A-game again and being there for the team.”
The Lady Lions got another boost from freshman guard Miya Renteria, Aaliyah’s sister. She finished the game with 11 points and five rebounds, while serving as the primary defender on the area’s top scorer, Ysee Le Borgne.
“I have to thank my teammates for the help on defense because they keep talking to me and telling me what goes on behind me,” Miya Renteria said. “So they let me know when screens are coming, and if I need help, they step up and help. So, it’s a team effort for sure.”
With only two new players from last year’s playoff team, an experienced Lady Lions face Sundown in a second-round matchup at 6 p.m. Thursday in Colorado City.
“Last year, it was most of our first year on varsity,” Renteria said. “This year, we’re experienced and confident and less nervous, and we know what to do.”
Milestone moment
Ozona’s bi-district championship marked McSherry’s 700th career win as a girls basketball coach.
Before posing with a bi-district championship banner, the team brought out a custom banner that the team made, celebrating the milestone achievement.
“It means everything,” McSherry said. “I knew we’d have a good chance to get 700 this year, and it was fun to do it in the first playoff game.”
McSherry has been a staple of creating and continuing winning programs in West Texas high school girls basketball. Before Ozona, he had head coaching stops at Lohn, Irion County, Menard, Ennis, Clyde, Sweetwater, Ballinger, Brady, Wall and Llano. After the game, he joked that nearly every playoff round could pit him against a team he once coached or a player he previously coached.
But more than anything, McSherry said he was glad to get past the milestone and not have it hanging over the team’s head.
“You wouldn’t believe, but to the kids, it means more right now to them,” McSherry said. “You know, down the road, whenever I’m retired and everything, I’ll look back on this stuff and it’ll mean more to me, I’m sure. But the kids wanted this so bad.”
It’s impossible to miss McSherry’s impact on West Texas girls basketball. Before, during and after games, a steady stream of current and former coaches and players make their way over, eager to shake his hand, share a hug or catch up. It’s something his players notice — and deeply appreciate.
“It felt amazing,” Aaliyah Renteria said. “We’ve been looking forward to (the 700th win) this whole season, so like this game’s the game. We’ve got to do it for him.”
Paul Witwer covers high school sports and Angelo State University sports for The San Angelo Standard-Times. Reach him at [email protected]. Follow him on X @Paul_Witwer, Instagram and TikTok at pwitwer_sast.
This article originally appeared on San Angelo Standard-Times: Ozona girls basketball wins bi-district, coach McSherry hits 700 wins
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