Tiger, Lady Tiger basketball takes a break

On the last day of the fall semester, the two Dripping Springs basketball teams took on Lake Travis with the same result: a loss to a competitive team.

All UIL teams are subject to the mandated five-day hiatus around Christmas Day from practice and play. The Tigers were entered in the Hays ISD Christmas Classic on Dec. 29 and 30, 2023, while the Lady Tigers did not start back until district play on Jan. 2.

The Lady Tigers hosted the Lady Cavaliers and, as usual, played hard the entire game. But shooting accuracy eluded them, and 21 turnovers did not help. The Lady Tigers still hustled the rebounds, pulling down 30 with Kenlea Hardin snatching eight of them. They also stayed with Lake Travis throughout the first quarter, trailing just 10-9. The second quarter was their Achilles heel, outscored 21-2. They did not give up and outscored Lake Travis 1411 in the third, but the Lady Tigers eventually fell 54-31.

The Tigers had an even tougher row to hoe in getting a win. Lake Travis had lost only one game at the time — to the number one team in the state. The Tigers showed they belonged in this race, especially in the first half. They trailed only 16-12 after one and 33-25 at the break. Lake Travis continued to widen their lead, outscoring the Tigers 14-7 in the third and pushing it out to 68-41 for the final.