The A.C. Jones High Trojan varsity basketball team was busy over the holidays, competing at the Wildcat Classic tournament in Calallen.

The Beeville boys managed just one win, but won at the right time to gain some momentum going into Tuesday night’s district opener at Miller.

The Trojans were up against the host Wildcats in round one on Tuesday afternoon. The Wildcats took advantage of way too many Beeville turnovers and captured an easy 60-27 win.

Keanu Gutierrez led the Beeville scoring with 11 points. Jeffery Stafford followed with eight and Conner Shears had four in the loss.

In game two against the Pharr-San Juan-Alamo Bears, the 5A school edged the Trojans, 64-51.

Nick Waters led the way for JHS with 12 points. Gutierrez recorded 10 points while Stafford hit for eight. Adam Garcia contributed with seven.

The Wednesday tilt with Kingsville went to the Brahmas by 10 points, 53-43.

Stafford had a team-high 14 points. Gutierrez was again in double figures with 10. Ryan Vasquez followed with nine. Shears had eight in the loss.

The final game of the tourney for the Trojans was a 51-44 win over the Alice Coyotes.

“This was a big win for us heading into district play Tuesday against Miller. We have had some ups and downs during the preseason, but these experiences will help us prepare and compete in district play,” said JHS head coach Abel Barrera.

The Trojans got 15 points from Vasquez to lead the balanced scoring attack. Gutierrez was also in double figures with 13. Chet Sparks worked inside for nine tallies. Shears contributed eight and Garcia had five. Stafford completed the scoring with one free throw.

“Conner Shears and Chet Sparks had a big game against Alice with rebounding and tough aggressive play on defense. Our guards did a better job on limiting turnovers, and were able to move the ball around more on offense which helped lead to easy scores,” Barrera said.

District 30-4A play began on Tuesday night. The Beeville boys opened on the road at Corpus Christi Miller. The Trojans will host Port Lavaca Calhoun on Friday night.

“If we can limit the turnovers and play more aggressively on defense, we feel we will be quite competitive in district,” Barrera said.