OK, the regular season is complete in basketball, so it’s time to get really serious, right?
Or . . .maybe the fun is just beginning for the Montezuma Braves.
The Braves start their post-season journey on Monday evening, Feb. 15, at home, against BGM. And yes, it will be live streamed on Montezuma’s school website.
Tip-off is at 7 p.m. for this match-up between the 19-2 Braves and the 4-17 Bears.
The Braves had a first-round bye into this game. BGM qualified with a 41-31 victory over a winless Tri-County team.
The Bears have some athletic ability, but it hasn’t translated into a lot of victories.
The teams have played twice. The Braves won 56-35 on Dec. 11. That was before Eddie Burgess returned to Montezuma’s lineup.
The Braves won again, 73-35, on Jan. 29, after Burgess returned.
Jacob Moel, 6-0, scores 12.9 points per game, averages 6.2 rebounds and 3.6 assists.
Trase Kriegel, 6-3, scores 11.7 per game, shoots .507 from the field and pulls down 9.0 rebounds.
Joe Kasal, 6-2, scores 8.4 per game.
For the Braves, Trey Shearer scores 27.4 per game, on .583 field goal shooting which includes .481 from behind the three-point arc. He’s a .78 percent free throw shooter.
Shearer averages 5.5 rebounds and 5.2 assists per game.
Cole Watts scores 19.8 points per game for the Braves, including shooting percentages of .602 from the field and .513 from behind the arc.
Watts is a 72 percent free throw shooter and pulls down 6.7 rebounds per game.
Then there’s the 6-4 Burgess, scoring 13.2 per game on .716 field goal shooting. He averages 12.6 rebounds, and pulled down a school record 22 against HLV last week.
Monday’s winner returns to Montezuma at 7 p.m. Thursday to take on the winner between Lynnville-Sully (12-8) and Sigourney (9-12).
ABOUT THE LIVE STREAM – Sponsors include AE Realty, Inc., Holland-Coble Funeral Home, Erin Black of GreenState Credit Union in Grinnell, and several anonymous donors.