Ron Holland, KJ Lewis shine, as Duncanville beats DeSoto to capture District 11-6A crown

DUNCANVILLE, Texas — Led by senior power forward and Texas Longhorns commit Ron Holland, the Duncanville Panthers — the No. 3 team in the SBLive/Sports Illustrated Power 25 Boys Basketball national rankings — rolled to 79-62 win over their rival DeSoto Eagles on Friday night to clinch the outright District 11-6A title.

Holland finished with a game-high 17 points and recorded his 900th career rebound in the Panthers' victory, Duncanville's 9th straight win. It also represents Duncanville's fourth outright district championship in the last six years.

The Texas commit scored 15 of his points during the first half alone to help the Panthers pounce on DeSoto early and secure a quick lead. With the help of senior point guard Arizona commit KJ Lewis, the Panthers raced out to a 50-34 lead at halftime before the hometown Eagles started making a push back into the game.

While not blowing up the score sheet, 5-foot-10 shooting guard Jackson Prince hit several clutch shots to keep the Panthers an arm’s length from DeSoto.

Despite trailing early, the Eagles made a push throughout the game that made a difference on their senior night. Thanks to the play of Jaxson Daivs, who scored 19 first half points, DeSoto was in the game the entire time.

However, despite holding Lewis and Collins to just four combined points during the second half, the Eagles were just not enough for the nationally-recognized Duncanville squad.

The second half saw the Panthers spread the ball around the perimeter and rely on their role players to boost their commanding lead over the Eagles. It worked very well in Duncaville’s favor, as the Eagles were never able to pull within six points.

Out of options, DeSoto realized that it wasn't not going to be able to claw back and take down the district champs, as the clock hit triple zeros with a score of 79-62.

Duncanville (28-1, 13-0) will play its final game of the 2022-23 season when the Panthers return to action against the Mansfield Legacy Broncos (21-8, 8-4) at 7:30 p.m. on Tuesday, Feb. 14, in Duncanville.

The Panthers, who have been banned from participating in the 2022-23 UIL boys basketball playoffs, will turn their attention to a national postseason slate following their regular-season finale.

DeSoto (24-8 ,9-4), meanwhile, will wrap up regular-season play when the Eagles close out their District 11-6A schedule versus the Mansfield Tigers (16-13, 2-9) at the same time Tuesday night in Mansfield.

Check out SBLive's exclusive photo gallery from the game:

PHOTO GALLERY — DUNCANVILLE 79, DESOTO 62

All photos by Brian McLean