A pair of Texas high school softball teams could not decide the length of its upcoming regional final playoff.
Instead, the final score of an NBA playoff game eventually settled affairs.
The coaches at Borden County and Hermleigh’s softball teams used a unique method to find out how many games its Texas UIL 1A regional final playoff scheduled for later this week was going to last. They used the final score of Sunday night’s NBA Eastern Conference semifinal playoff between the Cleveland Cavaliers and Indiana Pacers to settle things.
If the combined point total by the Cavs and Pacers were an odd number of points, Borden County and Hermleigh would play a best two-of-three series. If the Cavs and Pacers combined for an even total, then it would go to a winner-take-all one-game playoff.
As it turned out, the Pacers defeated the Cavaliers, 129-109, to take a 3-1 series lead. The final point total was 138, which means that Borden County and Hermleigh will now play a one-game regional final, with the winner advancing to the state semifinals.
That game will take place at 5 p.m. Friday, and will be held at Colorado City High School.
Ironically enough, Borden County and Hermleigh squared off in the regional finals last season, and that was determined by a best-of-three series. The series went a full three games, with Hermleigh’s Cardinals outlasting Borden County’s Coyotes, 15-14.