Plano East, Stony Point book much-hyped Texas high school state basketball title rematch

Plano East eyeing 40-0 season vs. Stony Point as nationally ranked programs seek first state titles at 8:30 p.m.

The Texas high school state basketball championship matchup many hoped for will come to fruition on Saturday night. 

Nationally ranked Plano East and Stony Point each won their respective UIL Class 6A state semifinal matchups on Friday night, squaring two of the state's best teams both seeking a coveted program-first state title at 8:30 p.m. at the Alamodome in San Antonio.

The programs have been the top two teams in every poll, including SBLive's Texas Power 25 and Texas' Class 6A coaches poll. Plano East is ranked No. 12 and Stony Point is the No. 20 ranked team in the country (SBLive/SI).

Plano East, which is state for the second time in program history and first time since 1994, is one win away from a perfect 40-0 season.

One of those wins, perhaps its biggest, came against Stony Point — the lone loss of the season by the Round Rock power (37-1)  — on Dec. 30. 

Plano East's back-and-forth 55-50 win got chippy at times, and offered a glimpse of a level of competitiveness befitting of a state tournament rematch.

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Since then, neither team has skipped a beat. 

Both won district titles and have run the postseason. 

After reaching the semifinals thanks to a game-winning 3, Stony Point got 19 points apiece from Villanova signee Josiah Moseley and Uzziah Buntyn, which was good enough to overcome a monstrous 27-point night from Clarence Payia. 

The 6-foot-5 Louisiana Tech commit hit late 3s to keep the Timberwolves within a possession late, and shouldered the bulk of the scoring in the absence of New Mexico-bound point guard Kayde Dotson, who was inactive and did not suit up.

DJ Hall's double-double (15 points, 10 boards) and Jordan Mizell chipped in 13 (on 6 of 9 shooting) to help Plano East pull away in the third quarter Friday night.

Will the bruising 6-foot-5, 225-pound Hall check Moseley, a 6-foot-5 guard, like he did in December and was held to 12 points?

PHOTO GALLERY: 6A STATE SEMIFINALS

All photos are by Tommy Hays.

STONY POINT DEF. BEAUMONT UNITED

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Photo by Tommy Hays, SBLive Sports
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Photo by Tommy Hays, SBLive Sports
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PLANO EAST DEF. LAKE RIDGE

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Photo by Tommy Hays, SBLive Sports
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-- Andy Buhler | andy@scorebooklive.com | @sblivetx


Published
Andy Buhler, SBLive Sports
ANDY BUHLER, SBLIVE SPORTS

Andy Buhler is a Regional Editor of Texas and the national breaking news desk. He brings more than five years of experience covering high school sports across the state of Washington and beyond, where he covered the likes of Paolo Banchero and Tari Eason served on state tournament seeding committees. He works on the SBLive/Sports Illustrated Power 25 national boys basketball rankings. He has covered everything from the Final Four, MLS in Atlanta to local velodrome before diving into the world of preps. His bylines can be found in The News Tribune (Tacoma, Washington), The Associated Press, The Columbian (Vancouver, Washington), The Oregonian and more. He holds a degree from Gonzaga and is based out of Portland, Oregon.