Gallery by Heather Belcher
Clear Fork – Friday night at the Burial Grounds, construction was the theme for the Westside student section.
On the hardwood, the Renegades were the bump in the road that snapped James Monroe’s four-game winning streak.
Clamping down defensively, Westside held the visiting Mavericks to only a pair of field goals across the second and third periods en route to a 53-38 win.
Following a nine-day layoff due to weather induced cancellations, Renegades head coach Nick Cook was happy with how his team responded against a regional foe.
“Outside of the first maybe six minutes of the game, we played pretty well,” Cook said. “We talked about it before the game. These regional opponents, you almost have to treat them like postseason games in the regular season. Bottom line is the top two seeds host all the way throughout to Charleston. If we can get one of those top two seeds, and teams have to come here to win, I like my chances. We want to win these regional games and the rest will take care of itself.”
For nearly nine minutes, the home squad appeared to be suffering from the layoff and James Monroe took advantage of the dry spell running out to a 9-0 lead.
Westside trimmed the deficit back to seven points after one quarter, but when Kadyn Hines ripped a 3-pointer, the Renegades were down 10 with 7:35 to play until halftime.
Over the next six minutes, however, the fortunes flipped for both teams. Westside came to life sparked by seniors Kadien Vance and Coltin Lester.
Six points from Vance warmed the icy waters for the Renegades before Lester went to work inside nailing a pair of stick backs and converting two free throws.
Lester’s two charity tosses capped a 14-0 run and James Monroe never recovered.
“Our defense was better and we got tougher. Mentally, physically, everything,” Cook said about the decisive run. “We adjusted to their physicality. We started out and let a few things bother us. Once we figured it out and adjusted to the physical part of the game, I thought my kids did a pretty good job.”
A free throw from Hines halted the scoreless streak, but Lester applied one more dagger with 25 seconds remaining in the half for a 20-15 lead at the break.
“The first three or four minutes, whatever it was, we looked pretty good. We got in a little bit of foul trouble and had to change things up defensively, which allowed them to become comfortable,” James Monroe head coach Kelly Mann said. “I think that was a pivotal moment. We have to play through that. We lost a little confidence. This is a young team and when (Westside) started to come back, it got a little louder in there and we lost it a little emotionally.”
Lester ended the night with 15 points, but all came at backbreaking moments for James Monroe.
“It seemed liked every loose ball or every 50-50 ball, he got. Balls around the rim, it seemed like he got it and had an easy putback,” Cook said. “It was always big ones too, like right when they were on the cusp of making a run. I thought every bucket he got was big.”
Following a quiet first half, Austin Bishop added to the misery for the visitors by knocking down back-to-back 3-pointers, giving Westside its initial double-digit margin. Bishop finished the second half with three more triples and a game-high 18 points.
“I told him yesterday at practice that I wanted to see one of these hot shooting performances that I have been hearing about. He told one was coming tomorrow night. First half, I was starting to doubt that, but the second half he came alive and it was impressive to see him knock those shots down,” Cook said. “I think he is so much better coming off of the screens than trying to create on his own. We want him to let his teammates do the work and all he has to worry about is knocking shots down. He is starting to figure that out. When he catches the ball in rhythm, I don’t know of a better shooter really.”
The Renegades added 13 more points in the third period, but once again riddled the Mavericks defensively, allowing only one made field goal and three points for the quarter.
“That is one of our better defensive efforts by this team because (James Monroe is) a really good team and runs some good stuff on offense. To hold them to 18 points going into the fourth quarter speaks volumes as to where our defense is getting to,” Cook said. “That is what we have spent a lot of time on. Our offense is not where it needs to be, but we have been focusing more on our defense. Once we get the defense where I am comfortable with it, we will start working on the offense more.”
For James Monroe, while it had struggles getting the ball in the basket, it was also not a typical effort by the Monroe County boys either.
“You are on the road playing against a quality team and these guys know how to play basketball down here. You expect when the guys come off the bench to have real high energy and not miss some effort plays,” Mann said. “I think we missed some effort plays off the bench. When you are struggling a little bit, you fight back with effort, energy and those type of things. It just kept stacking up on us. We deserved that outcome.”
JM: 17 4 3 20 – 38
W: 4 16 13 20 – 53
James Monroe
Wil Boggess 2, Layton Dowdy 5, Kadyn Hines 15, Ryan Mann 6, Jaylen Miller 1, Bryce Gardinier 2, Brady Baker 7.
Westside
Austin Bishop 18, Bryson Blankenship 6, Kaiden Vance 11, Colton Lester 15, Bradyn Waldron 2.
