The Nevada Tiger Basketball Team had a rough start in the first two days of action in the Butler tournament this week but finished it up on Saturday in dominant fashion. The Tigers would start the 1st quarter by winning the tip, but both teams would come up empty in their opening drives.
The game was very fast-paced from the early minutes and Junior, Jack Cheaney would quickly find the bucket on a dribble and drive to open up scoring and put Nevada up 2-0. University Academy Charter would go down to the other end and hit a corner 3 taking the only lead they would have in the game at 3-2. The Tigers began full-court pressure against the Gryphons opening up several opportunities for steals and quick transition buckets. Before the quarter was over Nevada would have all sophomores on the court as 4 of the 5 starters were able to get a few extra minutes of rest and the quarter would end with a score of Nevada 15, UAC 7.
The 2nd and 3rd quarters are where Nevada really began to up the pressure. They would start out with a great pass from Kellen Braden to Jack Cheaney for a quick reverse lay-up and gain their first double-digit lead of the game. Continuing to add pressure to a Gryphon squad that showed a few times they could break it, but the majority of the game was a bit rattled. Uche Mba proved to many that he can be a threat from anywhere on the court as he hit an open 3 from the right arc, continuing to add to the balance in scoring the Tigers would see throughout the game. With just over 5 minutes left in the 2nd quarter, Coach Gray would again put in a loaded sophomore crew giving Tiger fans a glimpse of what the future of Tiger basketball looks like.
Opening up the 3rd quarter all five Nevada Tiger starts would return to the game. They looked just a bit shaky starting out, but once they got their footing they went to work creating turnovers off the press and looking for the open man to the basket. Kellen Braden hit a 3 from the right arc and then quickly turned around in his position of the press on the defensive end getting a steal and an assist to Brice Budd for the lay-in. On the very next play, Jack Cheaney would create a steal using quick hands on defense and hit a running Brice Budd for another lay-up. Brice would also create a few steals of his own and find an open lay-up at the other end. The Tigers opened their first 30-point lead of the ballgame with just under 2:30 to go in the quarter, and once again the starters began finding their way to the bench, knowing they had done their part and had now given their teammates a chance to see some Varsity action.
In the 4th quarter, Tiger fans would see a turbo clock running and several faces of future Tiger teammates. Head Coach Shaun Gray mentioned after the game that not only was it great for the scout team to see valuable minutes on the court but also “our main rotation guys were enthusiastic and very supportive of their teammates when their roles were flipped and they were manning the bench for more than normal portions of the game. That Togetherness and Family attitude is another thing that makes these guys so special and fun to be around every day.”
The Tigers would go on to win the game with a score of 58-26, holding the Gryphons to 15 points in the first half and 11 in the second half of play. 10 Nevada Tigers found the bucket and added to the scoring column, while 14 were able to get into the game and see extended minutes.
Brice Budd would lead all scorers with 19 points, 9 of those coming in the first quarter. While the offensive addition was nice, Coach Gray pointed out that “Brice led our defensive effort and his energy also led to several transition buckets. He also played well off of 2-feet in the paint and took advantage of University Academy Charter’s lack of size.” Jack Cheaney would add 8 points, Mason Majors had 7, Gabe Smith and Alex Ast each had 5-a-piece, Shawn Simmons added 4, Kellen Braden and Uche Mba each put a trey on the board, and Mongomery Palmer added a bucket for 10 Nevada Tigers in the scoring column.
Coach Gray was proud of how his team responded to losing the first two games in the tournament and coming out with intensity and drive in an early Saturday afternoon contest. As with any game, it’s also important to look at things you can improve on, and he said he would like to see them “improve on our court vision, seeing the open man sooner, and also our FT shooting–this has been an Achilles heel for too long and something we have to correct in order to win big and close games.” He also added that “we are excited to get to work Monday in preparation for a Tuesday game against District opponent Harrisonville, who is off to a great start this season.”
The upcoming Harrisonville game will be the last one for Nevada before the holiday break and would be a great opportunity to build momentum going into the next half of the season. You can watch your Nevada Tigers on nevadamotv.com as well as listen to them on Sunny 99.9FM on Tuesday, Varsity tip-off is predicted to start around 7:30 pm at Harrisonville.