Cy Falls boys take first place in District 17-5A

Cypress Falls and Cypress Lakes are in different zones in District 17-5A and only meet once this season. So when the Spartans and the Eagles met Tuesday night, bragging rights for the whole year were on the line.

Both entered the game undefeated in district play, but Cy Falls came out with a spotless record after beating Cypress Lakes 73-44 at the Berry Center.

Cy Falls (14-9) is now in first place in 17-5A with a 3-0 record.

Cypress Lakes (16-8) is one of the favorites in the district after winning the Cy-Fair basketball tournament in December. The Spartans are one of the best 3-point shooting teams in 17-5A, but the Eagles had a plan for that.

"They can kill you with the three," Cy Falls coach Jim Draudt said. "But even more than that, they can kill you with all the offensive rebounds they get every time they miss one of those 3-pointers and put the ball back in."

So Draudt had his players stick to Cy Lakes players like glue.

"Our goal was to be close to them, contest them, get a hand in their face," Draudt said. "They are so good with second shots, so I thought we did a pretty good job."

Cy Falls outrebounded the Spartans 29-19 in the game to take away second-chance opportunities. On top of their defensive efforts, the Eagles didn't have any trouble scoring.

Four players scored in double digits for Cy Falls. Mitch Badillo had 20, Matt Slade had 15, Kerry Kang had 13 and Kole Batiste had 11.

"The guys are really starting to except their roles," Draudt said. "I think we have really grown as the year has gone on."

Cy Falls will try to hold onto its perfect district record when they play host Cypress Creek at 7 p.m. on Friday. Cy Lakes, which dropped to 2-1 in District 17-5A, will host Cypress Ranch next Tuesday at 7 p.m.

"We only see them once this year, so this was a really big win for us," Draudt said. "That is one of the teams I think will be at the front of the pack in this district, so it feels good to be done and have the win."

jenny.dial@chron.com