TABC 2026: The Woodland Highlanders vs El Paso East Lake Falcons

Basketball coaches, unfortunately, catch a lot of heat for things like bad culture and losing. However, from my vantage point at this game, the Woodland staff manages things the right way. During every timeout, the coaches huddle for a minute while the players hold their own player-only huddle. I love that the staff gives their players the space to figure things out on their own. This is definitely a culture-building practice I plan to adopt in my own coaching practice moving forward. I also have to add that their bench was absolutely lit, bringing a high-energy presence that heavily reinforced the team culture.   That strong team unity was on full display on the court, as the Highlanders beat the East Lake Falcons 35-19. The key difference in this matchup was that the Highlanders had [player_tooltip player_id='718995' first='Rachael' last='Roberts'], and East Lake simply had no answer for her production. Driven by her dominant play, the Highlanders completely ran away with the lead in the second half. Roberts, whom I recognized as a “Next Level” player in an article just a couple of days ago, proved exactly why she earned that distinction.      Kasyn had an amazing game, showcasing an elite ability to see the court and thread the needle. She was making passes from everywhere on the floor, making that vision look like her absolute superpower. Defensively, she was incredibly active, disrupting passing lanes and turning several steals into quick transition points for her team. Her high basketball IQ kept her in the right position the majority of the game.       Sydney delivered a couple of beautiful passes to her teammates to initiate the offense and stayed incredibly active on the defensive end. Her energy and ability to disrupt her opponents made a noticeable impact throughout the game.       Leslie brought a tremendous presence to the floor, establishing herself as a force inside by taking up space in the post and relentlessly rebounding on both ends. She also displayed great mobility for her size, picking off a couple of steals and taking them coast to coast. Late in the game, she showed off her extended range by knocking down a clutch three-pointer.       Ava's on-ball pressure was on point the entire game. She sat down in a stance, used her lateral quickness to disrupt the ball-handler, and applied constant pressure that completely threw her opponents out of sync.       Jaylin performed well in the paint, making an impact on both ends of the floor. On the offensive end, she finished through contact at the rim. Defensively, she got rebounds to give her team additional offensive possessions.

Basketball coaches, unfortunately, catch a lot of heat for things like bad culture and losing. However, from my vantage point at this game, the Woodland staff manages things the right way. During every timeout, the coaches huddle for a minute while the players hold their own player-only huddle. I love that the staff gives their players the space to figure things out on their own. This is definitely a culture-building practice I plan to adopt in my own coaching practice moving forward. I also have to add that their bench was absolutely lit, bringing a high-energy presence that heavily reinforced the team culture.