OK, Braves basketball fans, quick now: Try to describe, in five words or less, what you saw during the fourth quarter of Montezuma vs. Lynnville-Sully II, on Friday night, Jan. 20, in the Monte gym.
I can’t do it. If you use less than five words . . .shame on you!
The Braves, down 59-50 through three quarters, put up 34 points in eight minutes, to win, 84-76.
Montezuma took down what had been a 15-0 team that was rated eighth in the Associated Press poll.
A team that is rangy up front and quick in the backcourt. A team which is the fifth-ranking defense in Class 1A, and has been holding teams in the 30s of late.
You just never know.
Braves forward Garrett Watts had a career game with 30 points, and he and forward Gavin Strong each offered up their bodies on the boards and grabbed nine rebounds each.
And, perhaps most decisive, the Braves were casting in three-pointers. At a .565 percentage, 13-of-23, to be exact.
“I think our balance and outside shooting can make us really difficult to defend,” said Braves Coach Derrick Denger.
“In this game, we had it going from three, which means we can stretch the defense and attack the hoop. We got to the line a lot and made free throws.” The Braves dropped in 17 of 22 from the line.
Offensive rebounds are important to Lynnville-Sully. Of the nine boards each grabbed by Watts and Strong, seven each were off the defensive board.
That means 14 potential putbacks the Hawks didn’t get.
Lynnville-Sully showed why it’s a good team. Preston Rodibaugh (6-3) scored 24 points and pulled down 10 rebounds, while 6-6 Klayton Van Dyke had 18 points and 10 boards.
“We got just enough stops to get it done,” Dengler said.
The Braves had four double figures scorers. Watts got his 30 on six-for-17 shooting, which included four-for-five on treys and eight-for-nine on free throws.
Freshman guard Brady Boulton scored 19 and hit three-of-five from behind the arc.
Guard Masin Shearer scored 14, and Strong scored 10 and dished five assists.
Mitchell Miller scored 11 points for Lynnville-Sully and guard Corder Noun Harder dished seven assists.
The game’s result threw a tire iron into the South Iowa Cedar League race.
Lynnville-Sully fell to 12-1 in the league; 15-1 overall.
The Braves went to 10-3 against the league, and to 12-3 overall.
Somewhere near lurks North Mahaska.
UP NEXT – Montezuma is at Colfax-Mingo on Tuesday, Jan. 24.
SCORE BY QUARTERS
Lynnville-Sully 25 11 23 17 – 76
Montezuma 16 20 14 34 – 84
MONTEZUMA (84)
Gavin Strong 3-14, 3-4, 1, 10. Masin Shearer 5-12, 2-3, 2, 14. Garrett Watts 9-17, 8-9, 0, 30. Brady Boulton 6-15, 4-6, 4, 19. Colton Benson 0-0, 0-0, 1, 0. Owen Cook 2-3, 0-0, 3, 5. Kohen Holland 0-0, 0-0, 1, 0. Max Anderson 2-2, 0-0, 2, 6. TOTALS – 27-63, 17-22, 14, 94.
LYNNVILLE-SULLY (76)
TOTALS – 28-69, 11-18, 18, 76
Line score legend: field goals made-attempted, free throws made-attempted, personal fouls, total points.
Three-pointers: Montezuma 13-23 (Watts 4-5, Boulton 3-5, Shearer 2-5, Anderson 2-2, Cook 1-2, Strong 1-4); L-S 9-33.
Turnovers: Montezuma 8, Lynnville-Sully 11.
Rebounds: Montezuma 27 (Strong 9, Watts 9, Shearer 3, Holland 3, Cook 2, Boulton 1); L-S 35.
Assists: Montezuma 12 (Strong 5, Shearer 2, Boulton 2, Watts 1, Benson 1, Cook 1).
Steals: Montezuma 3 (Strong 2, Boulton 1).
Deflections: Montezuma 2 (Boulton 2).