Liberty Hill HS boys basketball team in state tournament

LIBERTY HILL, Texas (FOX 7 Austin) - Back in the late 80's and early 90's, Liberty Hill made three trips to the state tournament but finished just shy of the title.

Now almost 30 years later the Panthers are back on the biggest stage and are hoping to make school history.

Blake Boren has been coaching for 40 years and has spent 17 as Liberty Hill's head coach. Now for the first time ever he's taking a team to the state tournament.

"It's been a long time coming. And I apologize for that. But we've had some outstanding teams. We've had some outstanding players," Boren says.

The players say they hope to keep the season alive for Coach Boren.

"I want to do it for him real bad. He wants it as much as we do. Maybe even more. Since he's been doing it longer than us. So yeah, I want to win for him especially," junior guard Carson Perkins says.

Liberty Hill may be more traditionally known for football but the Panthers have definitely had their success on the court as well.

The team has made the playoffs the last 16 years under Coach Boren but they're still trying to get that first state title.

"We've averaged 25 wins a season for a period of 16 years. That's phenomenal," Boren says. "You know the only thing we haven't done is get to the state level."