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Wixon: In matchup of two top area teams, OT and a lot of defense help Desoto to win over South Grand Prairie

DESOTO — “Defense” is printed on the back of DeSoto’s jerseys, and hanging on to a slim lead in overtime Friday, that’s what the Eagles needed.

DeSoto held South Grand Prairie to three points in overtime to escape with a 47-43 victory in a matchup of two of the area’s best teams.

“That’s 7-5A,” DeSoto coach Chris Dyer said, describing what might be the toughest basketball district in the state. “I don’t think people understand how tough this district is. When teams in this district play, it doesn’t matter, you can throw out the records.”

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DeSoto (21-3, 8-1 7-5A) and South Grand Prairie (18-5, 6-3) have impressive records, and it was obvious why on Friday. The teams play extremely hard, and they make it extremely difficult to score. SGP won this season’s first matchup with DeSoto, 51-48, and DeSoto hasn’t allowed a district opponent to score 50 since then.

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DeSoto forward Terry Maston led all scorers with 23 points, including a three-point play in overtime that helped the Eagles, the area’s top-ranked 5A team, pull away. Point guard Julian Miranda hit a pair of free throws with 20 seconds left to ice the game, which featured 11 lead changes in the second half.

South Grand Prairie, No. 3 in the area, didn’t shoot the ball well but stayed close with its work on the offensive boards. Two offensive rebounds in the final minute of regulation set up D.J. Thorpe’s 3-pointer that tied the score at 40-40 with 15 seconds left.

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A free throw gave SGP a 41-40 lead to start overtime, but DeSoto’s Marques Boldon took the lead back with two free throws before Maston scored on a baseline move and was fouled. He made the free throw to complete the three-point play and give DeSoto a 45-41 lead.