RAMSEY
Brownstown Central’s march through the Mid-Southern Conference didn’t miss a step Friday at North Harrison High School.
The Braves’ boys basketball team used its speed to dictate the pace of play and register a 51-41 victory over the Cougars.
[sc:text-divider text-divider-title=”Story continues below gallery” ]Click here to purchase photos from this gallery
The Braves (5-0, 3-0 MSC) opened the game on a 7-2 run on four points by Michael Boshears and a 3-pointer by Isaac Johnson.
Sophomore Langdon Hatton, 6-9, then got some momentum moving for the Cougars (2-4, 0-3 MSC).
The teams tied the score three times before Johnson hit a 3-pointer on a broken play at the buzzer to push the Braves in front 16-14.
Boshears and Johnson each had six points and Hatton totaled nine for the Cougars in the opening eight minutes.
BCHS put together eight unanswered points to start the second quarter, extending their lead to 24-14 with 6:05 on the clock.
Like they did in the first quarter, the Cougars responded with a scoring streak.
A 6-0 run by the Cougars cut the deficit to 24-20 before Braves coach Dave Benter employed a tactic he rarely uses.
Boshears held on to the ball near for almost four minutes before the Braves took the final shot of the half.
“We were in foul trouble. They were on a 6-0 run and they weren’t coming out and pressuring us,” Benter said.
At the break, the Braves stayed up by four points.
After exchanging a pair of baskets to open the second half, the Braves went on a 6-0 run behind three different scorers to build their lead to 32-24 with 3:45 left in the third quarter.
Boshears closed the scoring in the period with a pair of free throws, as the Braves led 34-28.
A basket by Boshears and 3-pointer from Braden Neal pushed the score to 39-28 with 6:26 left in regulation, and the Braves used 10-2 run to go up 44-33 with four minutes remaining.
The Braves buckled down defensively the rest of the way to secure the win.
Boshears led the Braves with 22 points and Johnson added 14. Hatton topped the Cougars with 17 and Braden Jenkins chipped in 11.
“Tonight was Mike’s best game of the year,” Benter said. “When he plays at that level, he’s tough to guard and it opens things up for other guys. I understand there will be nights where we don’t need him to score that many points. Tonight, he put us on his back a little bit offensively.”
From the field, the Cougars shot 16-for-34 and the Braves were 21-for-42.
On the boards, the Braves were outrebounded 23-17. The Braves had five turnovers to the Cougars’ 15.
Outmatched in size at almost every position, the Braves knew they needed to play fast.
“Before the game, we talked about how we needed to speed them up in transition,” Benter said. “Sometimes to do that, you need stops. We needed to guard them in the half court. They wanted to get the ball inside. Steals and defensive rebounds got us moving in transition. I thought our guys battled tonight.”
The Braves will travel to Mitchell tonight for a non-conference game.