First quarter leads Knights over Stallions
It was a first quarter start by the visiting Bullard Knights boys basketball team that decided the game at Madera South.
Bullard raced out to a 31-7 lead in the first quarter en route to an 80-24 victory over the Stallions on May 5.
“This season has been hard. There are so many sports going on its hard for us to get everyone practicing and into basketball shape,” Stallions head coach Jody Sharp said. “We are just starting to get some kids back and they can work with out with us from time to time but they can’t get full basketball reps. There is a difference between getting shape for basketball and football.”
Lejuan Watts led the way for the Knights in the first quarter with 9 points including two 3-pointers while guard Jaylan Walton scored 10. The initial Knights surge put the Stallions in a hole they were unable to climb out of.
Vincent Botello, CJ Robinson and Nathan Barron pitched in six combined points in the first quarter in what looked like a solid start for the Stallions. Botello connected on a long-range shot to open the game, but the Stallions were unable to continue that momentum as Bullard quickly took over.
Madera South scored seven in the first quarter, eight in the second, two points in the third and finally seven in the final quarter.
The Stallions tried their best to neutralize the Knights transition offense, but the sheer athleticism from the Knights over powered Madera South.
“We are playing and working getting better. That’s a positive in my opinion. This is a different season and we are just thinking about this in a different way,” Sharp said. “We were shut down in June and missed a lot of time. Compared to the private schools and others, they went by their own set of rules. We want to get better, that’s our goal.”
Eleven different Bullard Knights got on the scoresheet in their 56-point win, but it wasn’t just one player that led the charge, the Knights, as a whole, pressured Madera South all evening.
Bullard ran out to a 52-15 lead and never looked back as the halftime buzzer rang.
The third quarter only widened the gap as Madera South scored two points behind Rondell Jordan. Bullard on the other hand countered with 15, widening the gap heading into the fourth quarter.
Madera South had their second best quarter of the night with seven points total by Hector Dejesus, Isaiah Ford and Aldo Cardenas.
Despite being down almost 50 points in the final quarter, the Stallions kept going forward.
