Canes nab share of 28-5A crown

Jawon Anderson was walking to Sam Houston’s huddle Friday night when one of his teammates sitting on the bench gave him a little advice.

As the junior headed to the huddle for a timeout, a teammate told Anderson he was bound to get a steal if he anticipated the pass and jumped into one of Lanier’s passing lanes.

Anderson followed the advice, ended up with an easy basket and benefited from an extra set of eyes in the Hurricanes’ 63-52 win over the Voks at the Alamo Convocation Center.

“No one saw that on the court,” Anderson said.

High-pressure defense and the steals it produces helped the Hurricanes prevail and clinch at least a share of the District 28-5A title. But bench play over the last few weeks is a reason why the Hurricanes are in a prime position as the postseason approaches.

Senior Henry Carter came off the bench to score eight points for the Hurricanes, including a key 3-pointer in the third quarter that helped the Hurricanes (17-9, 13-3 district) open up a big lead. Sam Houston turned steals and turnovers into points, including Carter’s triple. Anderson led the way with 14 points, but reserves like Marion Springs (six points) provided an example of the production the Hurricanes are receiving off the bench.

Carter said the bench has picked up the feel of the things as the season has progressed.

“At the same time last year, everybody started getting involved, everybody started playing as a team,” Carter said.

The parallels in bench production between this year and last year may be there, but the records are largely different. Sam Houston had the district’s fourth and final playoff seed in 2014.

This year, the Hurricanes could end up with the first seed if Jefferson fails to win out and secure a tiebreaker.

Either way, Sam Houston coach Erik Coleman knows the value his bench provides this time of year.

“We’re taking it game by game,” Coleman said, “but if the bench plays well for us, we can go pretty far in the playoffs.” bbaby@express-news.net Twitter: @Ben_Baby