With two of its top-scoring players, senior small forward Ryan Agarwal and senior point guard Naz Brown, out due to injury in the last few weeks, the Coppell boys basketball team’s road to the playoffs was rougher than expected.

Tonight, the Cowboys, back at full power, will be tested against McKinney at Prosper Rock Hill in the Class 6A Region I bi-district playoffs with tipoff at 7 p.m. 

“Agarwal and Brown are two of the biggest players on the team,” Coppell senior guard Devank Rane said. “Having those two back is a big deal for us, especially in terms of putting up points.”

The Cowboys’ last matchup against McKinney, on Dec. 30, ended in a loss, with the Lions taking a 70-50 victory. The large point discrepancy can be attributed mainly to McKinney junior small forward Jakobe Walter, the 6-foot-5-inch three-star recruit who scored 34 points on 16 shots against Coppell.

“We were still in that game up until the fourth quarter,” Rane said. “We didn’t play our best that game. When we went back and watched the film, we realized we could do a lot more to improve and do better next time.”

Coppell is looking to take a page from Denton Guyer’s playbook, who beat the Lions, 67-55, on Feb. 11. 

“What Guyer did was get up on Walters,” Rane said. “They made it hard for him to even get shots up; we didn’t do that last time. The plan is to really make it as tough as possible for him to get shots.”

Following the December matchup, Coppell looks to eliminate turnovers and limit second chance shots by the Lions.

“It’s been a big focus to play physically on both ends,” Rane said.“Last game, we didn’t use their flaws to our advantage, and this time we’ll be trying to.”

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