By Jim Muir
All basketball coaches will tell you that there are nights when the offense is just not as crisp and sharp as they would like but they will quickly add that defense should never have an off night.
That was the theme for the Benton Middle School 8th grade basketball team Tuesday night as they upped their season mark to 12-3 with a 61-31 home victory over Harrisburg.
“We were a little sloppy on the offensive end tonight,” said Junior Rangers coach John Cook. “But, we really played well on the defensive end. We always preach holding teams to under 40 points a night and have been able to do that in 12-of-15 games this year.”
The BMS squad jumped out to a 13-9 fist quarter lead and then outscored Harrisburg 17-5 in the second quarter to take a commanding 30-14 halftime lead.
Cook also credited a decisive advantage in rebounds as another key to the game.
“We out-rebounded them 43-25 so we didn’t give them second and third chances,” said Cook. “It was just another all-around good team win for us.”
Derek Oxford led Benton in scoring with 23 points and also grabbed nine rebounds despite being hampered by foul trouble. Austin Wills turned in a double-double with 10 points and 12 rebounds. Wills’ work on the boards drew high marks from his coach.
“Austin was struggling with his shot a little,” Cook said. “But, he stepped up big with six offensive and six defensive rebounds.”
Cook also pointed to “the little things” that added to the victory over the Bulldogs.
“Oliver Davis stepped up and defended their best player when Oxford and Wills were in foul trouble and held him to five points on the night,” said Cook. “Things like that sometimes go unnoticed, but people who know basketball know how important little things like that are. Our kids understand it as well as anyone.”
Tyson Houghland continued to play well for Benton and also hit double figures with 11 points to go with four rebounds and two steals. Rounding out the scoring for Benton was Davis, Blane Pankey and Jordan Richey with three points and Hamilton Page, Brett Bonenberger and Tony Tillman with two each. Also seeing action for Benton was Gehrig Wynn, Scott Mosely, Parker Williams and Jourdan Garbo.
The Benton 7th grade squad, coached by Andy Davis, was also victorious and improved to 10-2 overall with a 39-26 victory over Harrisburg.
Benton led 8-5 after the first quarter and extended the lead to 19-9 at halftime.
Brett Bonenberger led the way for Benton with 14 points and was followed by Drew Owens with six points, Parker Williams with five points, Hamilton Page, Blane Pankey and Gehrig Wynn with four each and Mason Wills with two points. Also seeing action for the 7th grade team was Eldon Owens, Joey Craig and Robbie Moore.
Both BMS squads are back in action on Thursday, Jan. 10 when they travel to Carbondale.
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