Photo: Westbrook Christian’s Brady Carden (center) attempts a shot as West End’s Logan Proctor (22) and Conner Walker (4) defend during the Warriors’ 79-32 victory in high school basketball on Tuesday, Nov. 19 in Walnut Grove. (Chris McCarthy/Messenger)
By Chris McCarthy, Publisher
With little room to operate at the midway point on the second quarter against West End, the Westbrook Christian boys basketball team needed someone to provide a spark for the Warrior offense.
Henry Williamson wound up lighting the flame. The senior guard came off the bench to score all 25 of his points over the final 19 minutes to lead Westbrook (2-0) to a 79-32 victory over the Patriots on Tuesday, Nov. 19 in Walnut Grove.
“Energy-wise, Henry really stepped up when we needed someone to, both on offense and defense,” said Westbrook head basketball coach Neal Wester. “He came up with a couple of steals and had several deflections, and it kind of got our guys going. We were able to get a few turnovers and hit some shots and we kind of steamrolled from there.
“Our full-court pressure gave them some problems, and then we picked it up on the halfcourt. But give West End credit; they did a good job of controlling the tempo early on.”
The Warriors opened the game with a 9-1 run before the West End defense settled in. Braxton Walker’s three-point basket at the first quarter buzzer drew the Patriots within 9-6.
David Dodge’s trey at the 4:53 mark of the second period cut the Westbrook advantage to 12-9, but that turned out to be West End’s high-water mark for the game. The Warriors closed out the first half with a 26-4 run that included eight points from Williamson and seven from Bo Kilgo, and West End never got within 20 points during the final 16 minutes.
Gavin Slocum netted seven points during the third period to stretch the lead to 60-22 after three quarters, and with a running clock during most of the fourth period, Williamson scored 11 points to help Westbrook win by a 47-point margin.
Kilgo finished with 14 points, four rebounds, four steals and three assists; Titus Jones contributed 11 points, six assists, six steals and two rebounds; Brady Carden added nine points and three rebounds and Maximus Jones had five steals, four rebounds and three assists.
Conner Walker paced West End with 10 points, followed by Dodge with six and Hayden Graham with five.
“We did a much better job today of getting the offensive rebounds and taking care of ball,” said Wester. “We have no returning starters, but this group really likes to compete. We’ve got a long way to go, but these kids love to practice and love to compete, and I like their attitude and their effort.”
