The Montezuma junior high boys ‘A’ team controlled tempo and Baxter, beating the Bolts 51-34 at home on Monday, Feb. 1.
Montezuma led start to finish and had quarter leads of 12-7, 23-12 and 38-12.
Brady Boulton and Houston Van Roekel scored all but two of Montezuma’s points.
Boulton scored 31 and Van Roekel had 18.
“It was a really nice win against a big and physical Baxter team,” said Braves Coach John Beck. “I thought the boys did a real good job of controlling the tempo of the game.”
“Defensively, our guards did a great job of pressuring the ball,” the coach said. “Carter Michalek, David Rose, and Bryson Stockman all did a great job of making their ball handlers work every time down the court. It really disturbed their offense.”
“Our bigs had their hands full with the size of Baxter but they stepped up to the challenge. Kohen Holland, Peyton Minner, and Brett Plants all switched in and out and did a really nice job of forcing tough shots and clearing the boards,” Beck said.
“On offense, I thought we pushed the pace and really played our game. Brady Boulton had a real nice game attacking the basket and then later in the game he hit some big shots from outside. He does a nice job of running the point and starting our offense.”
Boulton was 11-for-19 from the field, and made four three-point baskets. He also had three assists and four steals. Van Roekel made five three-pointers and pulled down four rebounds.
“Houston Van Roekel had a huge game from outside as he put himself in a position to get the ball at spots where he shoots well,” Beck said. “Not many kids can hit 5 threes in a game but I feel like on any given night we have multiple young men who can do it.”
Max Anderson had three steals, two assists and two rebounds for the Braves.
“I thought Max moved the ball well and found the open guy in our offense. He’s the type of kid who understands our offense really well and does a great job with his decision making,” said the coach.
“This team has a bunch of kids who have a team mentality.” Beck added. “They know their roles and play them well.”