Intense defense leads Raiders in rout of New Bloomfield
By MATT KING/Daily Journal Sports Writer
Jan 08, 2005 - 23:23:39 CST
BONNE TERRE - Less than 24 hours after earning a hard-fought overtime win over Fredericktown, the North County Raiders were back in action on Saturday afternoon at home against New Bloomfield, a Class 2 school from central Missouri.
The Raiders showed no signs of fatigue, especially on the defensive end where they forced 30 turnovers in a 73-40 blowout victory over the Wildcats. North County (8-6) never trailed in the game, and has now won four of its last five.
The first quarter saw the Raiders take immediate control of the contest by hitting their first six shots from the field, including a trio of three-pointers. A steal by Adam Ketcherside set up a three-point play by C.J. Peterson to spark a 13-3 North County run, highlighted by back-to-back triples from Kyle Hawkins and Matt Thompson. The Raiders ended the opening period with a 20-10 advantage.
New Bloomfield committed five turnovers during its first eight possessions of the second quarter, and the Raiders capitalized on their defensive effort by scoring 10 straight points. Aaron Blunt capped the streak with a break-away layup and two free throws.
Haden Crumpton stopped the rally with a conventional three-point play for the Wildcats, but Derek Padgett promptly answered with one of his own at the other end for North County. Padgett led the Raiders in scoring with 15 points.
North County made three steals in consecutive defensive series to further frustrate the visitors. A turn-around jumper by Padgett gave the Raiders their largest lead of the first half at 41-14.
New Bloomfield (0-8) played its best basketball during the final two minutes of the half. A steal and layup by Taylor Bedsworth punctuated a 7-0 run to bring the Wildcats to within 20 points at the break.
The Raiders resumed their domination out of the locker room with a 9-0 run to start the third quarter. Ryan Blankenship increased the margin to 54-23 with back-to-back inside field goals as the Wildcats continued to struggle with their ball-handling.
Junior center Clay Cuno scored six of his team's eight points in the third, and was the standout player throughout the game for New Bloomfield. Cuno finished the night with 17 points and 10 rebounds.
North County carried a 66-29 lead into the fourth quarter and led by as many as 40 points at one point when Kyle Hathman converted a quick entry pass into a field goal.
Hathman led the Raiders in rebounds with seven and scored 10 points to match Thompson off the bench. North County enjoyed a spacious 33-9 margin in bench scoring.
North County will host Sullivan on Tuesday before welcoming Ste. Genevieve for a conference battle on Friday.
New Bloomfield - 10 11 8 11 - 40
North County - 20 21 25 7 - 73
SCORING:
New Bloomfield - C Cuno 17, H Crumpton 6, T Bedsworth 6, H Wall 5, D Frank 3, T Byrd 2, J Timbrook 1.
3-pointers - H Wall 1, T Bedsworth 1.
North County - D Padgett 15, K Hathman 10, M Thompson 10, C. Peterson 9, K Hawkins 8, R Blankenship 6, A Blunt 6, T Beers 4, W Foshee 3, A Ketcherside 2.
3-pointers - K Hawkins 2, M Thompson 2, T Beers 1.
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The Raiders showed no signs of fatigue, especially on the defensive end where they forced 30 turnovers in a 73-40 blowout victory over the Wildcats. North County (8-6) never trailed in the game, and has now won four of its last five.
The first quarter saw the Raiders take immediate control of the contest by hitting their first six shots from the field, including a trio of three-pointers. A steal by Adam Ketcherside set up a three-point play by C.J. Peterson to spark a 13-3 North County run, highlighted by back-to-back triples from Kyle Hawkins and Matt Thompson. The Raiders ended the opening period with a 20-10 advantage.
New Bloomfield committed five turnovers during its first eight possessions of the second quarter, and the Raiders capitalized on their defensive effort by scoring 10 straight points. Aaron Blunt capped the streak with a break-away layup and two free throws.
Haden Crumpton stopped the rally with a conventional three-point play for the Wildcats, but Derek Padgett promptly answered with one of his own at the other end for North County. Padgett led the Raiders in scoring with 15 points.
North County made three steals in consecutive defensive series to further frustrate the visitors. A turn-around jumper by Padgett gave the Raiders their largest lead of the first half at 41-14.
New Bloomfield (0-8) played its best basketball during the final two minutes of the half. A steal and layup by Taylor Bedsworth punctuated a 7-0 run to bring the Wildcats to within 20 points at the break.
The Raiders resumed their domination out of the locker room with a 9-0 run to start the third quarter. Ryan Blankenship increased the margin to 54-23 with back-to-back inside field goals as the Wildcats continued to struggle with their ball-handling.
Junior center Clay Cuno scored six of his team's eight points in the third, and was the standout player throughout the game for New Bloomfield. Cuno finished the night with 17 points and 10 rebounds.
North County carried a 66-29 lead into the fourth quarter and led by as many as 40 points at one point when Kyle Hathman converted a quick entry pass into a field goal.
Hathman led the Raiders in rebounds with seven and scored 10 points to match Thompson off the bench. North County enjoyed a spacious 33-9 margin in bench scoring.
North County will host Sullivan on Tuesday before welcoming Ste. Genevieve for a conference battle on Friday.
New Bloomfield - 10 11 8 11 - 40
North County - 20 21 25 7 - 73
SCORING:
New Bloomfield - C Cuno 17, H Crumpton 6, T Bedsworth 6, H Wall 5, D Frank 3, T Byrd 2, J Timbrook 1.
3-pointers - H Wall 1, T Bedsworth 1.
North County - D Padgett 15, K Hathman 10, M Thompson 10, C. Peterson 9, K Hawkins 8, R Blankenship 6, A Blunt 6, T Beers 4, W Foshee 3, A Ketcherside 2.
3-pointers - K Hawkins 2, M Thompson 2, T Beers 1.