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ATHENS — Tyler Legacy’s basketball season came to an end on Friday night with a 47-42 loss to No. 21 Mesquite Horn in the area round of the Class 6A Division II playoffs.

“They’re good defensively,” Tyler Legacy head boys basketball coach Kyle Smith said. “They’re really good. It’s a tough matchup for us because they can take away what we do best. I still didn’t think we did a good enough job of getting (Ja’Corian) Oes the ball. You’ve got to get your best player the ball in big games, and that’s on me. I thought we fought and thought we played hard.

“I’m proud of these guys and all they’ve overcome. The seniors are great. I wish we could’ve kept playing, but I still think when they look back on it after it all settles in, it’s going to be a special memory for them.”

Legacy finished the season with a 23-13 record as Friday’s setback ended its 10-game winning streak. The Red Raiders won their first district title since 2021, reached the playoffs for the second straight season and won their first playoff game since 2007. On Friday, they were aiming to advance to the third round of the playoffs for the first time since 1977.

Legacy sprinted out to a 7-1 lead and with a 10-6 advantage in the final minute of the first quarter, KJ Cyres and Josh Hall connected from downtown to give the Red Raiders a 16-6 lead after one. Legacy was 4 of 7 from 3-point range in the opening quarter.

The Red Raiders led 22-14 midway through the second quarter as Jayden Jones made the Red Raiders’ sixth three of the first half by six different players.

Horn battled back, holding Legacy without a field goal for the final 4:17 of the first half to cut the score to 27-23 at halftime. The Red Raiders did make five free throws in that span, including Jones being fouled on a 3-point attempt.

Legacy led for much of the third quarter before Horn went on a 9-2 run in the final 5:26 as the Jaguars took their first lead of the game just before the buzzer on a Victor McCardell layup to put the score at 35-34 entering the fourth quarter.

McCardell made another layup to open the fourth quarter. Gage Nuckolls hit a three with 5:16 left in the game to tie the score at 37. Horn was able to build its lead to 42-37 as the Red Raiders didn’t score for more than four minutes.

Zyere Ceasar hit a triple with 57 seconds left to cut the score to 42-40.

Horn got a layup from Cayden Johnson before Oes made two free throws for legacy with 29 seconds left. After a Zaedyn Owens free throw made the score 45-42, Legacy’s Jones put up a tying 3-point attempt with 12 seconds left that was no good. Owens made two free throws, and the Red Raiders missed their final two attempts as time expired.

Oes had just two field goal attempts in the second half, and one was a long 3-pointer at the final buzzer.

Legacy made nine 3-pointers in the game but was held to just four makes inside the 3-point line.

Jones led the Red Raiders with 11 points and five rebounds. Ceasar scored 10 points. Nuckolls had 5 points. Oes had 4 points. JP Rainer, Cyres, Tyler Henry and Hall all had 3 points.

Legacy had defeated Horn 61-58 on Dec. 28, ending a six-game losing streak to its former district foe.

Clinton Jones Jr. Led Horn (21-14) with 13 points. Owens had 12 points and seven rebounds. McCardell had 10 points and six boards. Other scorers were Johnson 6; Pishaun Walker 4; and Jordan Vasquez 2.

Horn advances to face Willis in the regional semifinals.

It was the final game for Legacy seniors Oes, Jones, Rainer, Henry, Hall, Bryson Perkins, Evan Massey and Brady Noyes.