Young and talented Lynnville-Sully came to play.
But so did state tournament-seasoned Montezuma, and the difference in this 62-36 district semifinals victory by the Braves on Thursday, Feb. 18 was in some of the details.
Some of those: Defense, which started with full-court pressure and finished by contesting most shots the Hawks attempted inside the three-point arc.
Rebounding: A 30-29 lead by Lynnville-Sully in that category, a much better performance by the Hawks than they had in January. But with 6-4 post Eddie Burgess grabbing 12 of those, most on the defensive end, it was enough for Burgess’ pinpoint outlet passes that ignited Montezuma’s transition offense.
Handling the ball: Lynnville-Sully did well, with 11 turnovers, decent for a district semifinal game against an up-tempo team. But Montezuma made just two.
Steals: Lynnville-Sully didn’t have one. Montezuma made nine.
Assists: Montezuma had 15, to 7 by the Hawks. Cole Watts and Eddie Burgess each had four and Cam Johnson had three. Corder Noun Harder had four for the Hawks.
Balance: Four Braves scored between 13 and 15 points.
The win sends 20-2 Montezuma against 20-2 Keota at 7 p.m. Tuesday, Feb. 23, in Williamsburg.
“I was very proud of our team defensively once again,” said Braves Coach Derrick Dengler. “I thought we did a good job of communicating and forcing Lynnville-Sully into difficult shots. That is the key in these district games, when everything gets a little tighter.”
The Braves jumped out to a 10-4 early lead by displaying early dominance on both backboards. Meanwhile, Montezuma’s pressure may have messed up some rhythm in the Hawks’ offense by pushing the ball deep into the wings.
Five Braves scored in a 14-7 Montezuma first quarter.
A pair of transition treys, one by Trey Shearer, the other by Cole Watts, pushed Montezuma out to a 26-11 during the second quarter, lead, which the Hawks didn’t seriously threaten.
Lynnville-Sully played hard on defense, flying at Montezuma shooters. That may have been a factor in a number of Braves misfires. Still, Montezuma enjoyed a 19-9 second quarter and a 33-16 halftime lead.
“Offensively, there were some stretches that got a little difficult,” Dengler said. “But we did a good enough job to execute and trust our teammates to attack downhill.”
The Braves played some half-court basketball after that, something they’ll no doubt have to do again as they progress along the tournament trail.
Cole Watts led Braves scorers with 15 points, on five three-pointers. Trey Shearer and Burgess each had 14 and Masin Shearer dropped in 13.
Like last month, Preston Rodibaugh (15 points) was the only Hawk to score in double figures. He was five-for-nine from the field, including three-for-five on three-points.
Klayton Van Dyke had 11 rebounds for Lynnville-Sully. He scored six points, second high on the team.
The Hawks shot .311 from the field on 14 hoops in 45 attempts. Montezuma was .453 on 24-for-62. Montezuma splashed down 10 three-point baskets.
The Hawks closed a 13-9 season.
SCORE BY QUARTERS
Lynnville-Sully 7 9 12 8 – 36
Montezuma 14 19 15 14 – 62
MONTEZUMA (62)
Cam Johnson 1-4, 2-2, 2, 4. Masin Shearer 5-12, 0-0, 0, 13. Cole Watts 5-9, 0-0, 2, 15. Trey Shearer 6-12, 0-2, 0, 14. Eddie Burgess 6-10, 2-2, 1, 14. Owen Cook 0-1, 0-0, 0, 0. Gavin Strong 1-5, 0-0, 1, 2. TOTALS – 24-53, 4-6, 6, 62.
LYNNVILLE-SULLY (36)
TOTALS 14-45, 3-4, 8, 36.
Line score legend: Field goals made-attempted, free throws made-attempted, personal fouls, total points.
Turnovers: L-S 11, Montezuma 2.
Three-point goals: L-S 5-18, Montezuma 10-26 (Watts 5-7, M. Shearer 3-8, T. Shearer 2-5, Johnson 0-1, Burgess 0-1, Cook 0-1, Strong 0-3).
Rebounds: L-S 30, Montezuma 29 (Burgess 12, Watts 6, T. Shearer 5, Johnson 3, Cook 3).
Assists: L-S 7, Montezuma 15 (Watts 4, Burgess 4, Johnson 3, M. Shearer 2, T. Shearer 2).
Steals: L-S none, Montezuma 9 (T. Shearer 3, Johnson 2, Burgess 2, M. Shearer 1, Watts 1).
Blocks: L-S 8, Montezuma 5 (Burgess 3, T. Shearer 2).