DALLAS — Two of the most elite high school basketball players in the state of Texas will square off on Friday night in a meeting of two state title contenders in Class 4A.
Dink Pate, the No. 2 ranked junior basketball player in Texas, leads 8th-ranked Pinkston on the road on Friday night, to face the No. 1 team in the 4A state rankings. The Carter Cowboys, led by the 7th-ranked junior in the state, Chance Puryear, are 18-2 on the season, and the favorites to win a state title in 2023.
This is the district opener for both teams, after they spent the first two months of the season playing high-end talent from across the state and beyond.
Now, the stretch run to the postseason begins, as both teams embark on a 10-game sprint to the finish. No question about it, these are the two premier teams in the district. This game and the Jan. 31 rematch at Pinkston will decide the district championship.
Pate teams with a talented starting five that features Desmeon Jones, Jaylon Dean-Vines, Bryce Dixon and Relvin Kelly. The Vikings have some good depth and have challenged themselves immensely of late, with Friday's game marking their fifth-consecutive game against a team ranked in the state. On Tuesday night, the Vikings knocked off No. 11 Sulphur Springs, 80-71, behind a 33-point, 15-rebound performance from Pate.
Puryear and the Cowboys, meanwhile, have had a truly remarkable season so far. They boast a glitzy 18-2 record that features wins over state-ranked 5A and 6A teams. They beat the No. 6 team Class 6A Desoto, 49-48, on New Year's Eve. Puryear, Kole Williams, Devin Lewis, Daniel Thomas and Kyle Givens lead a Cowboys team that has only lost to 6A teams this year, and one of those losses was to Beaumont United, who is ranked No. 2 in the state in 6A.
You can watch the game live on Friday night, with pregame coverage starting at 7:20 p.m., and the opening tip at 7:30 p.m. The game will be broadcast on the WFAA YouTube channel and on WFAA+, which can be downloaded to your television using Amazon Fire TV or ROKU.
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