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By Dana Harding (For OzarksSportsZone.com)
Springfield, Mo. — Glendale’s offense was certainly responsible for some long-range fireworks Friday night.
The Falcons connected on 16 3-pointers en route to an 82-38 win over Waynesville, but it was the defensive effort that drew the most praise from head coach Brian McTague.
“Offensively, this was pretty typical of what we’ve been all year,” McTague said. “The difference was at the defensive end. We made it very difficult for [Waynesville] to do much of anything; to get in any kind of a flow. I thought we did a great job at disrupting their drives and making it hard for them to complete any passes with rhythm.”
From the opening tip, Glendale showcased its ability to put scoreboard operators under extreme duress.
Back-to-back 3s from seniors Monty Johal and Jaxon Davis got the Falcons out to a quick, 6-0 lead and cranked the home-crowd volume to nearly unbearable levels.
The momentum-seizing run forced Waynesville head coach Chris Pilz to burn an early timeout and refocus the team’s defensive assignments; however, there wasn’t much the Tigers could do to slow the Falcon onslaught.
“We talked about how we wanted to guard them, but we just couldn’t figure out a way to get them guarded” Pilz said. “We could not cover them at the three-point line at all. They just whipped our tail end at every phase of the game.”
CLICK HERE FOR PHOTOS OF THE GAME
Glendale stretched its opening 8-0 run into a 27-11 lead at the end of the first quarter, with scoring phenom Johal opting to distribute the ball to teammates early on.
Davis proved to be the primary beneficiary, knocking down a trio of 3-pointers in the opening frame, including a buzzer-beater from the right wing.
The 5-foot-11 guard attributed the opening burst to Glendale’s ability to quickly break the press and convert easy scoring opportunities.
“I gotta say our ball movement was key,” Davis said. “They were trying to press us and make us go faster. I think we adapted to that by trying to break their press with passing and movement, and we got the shots we wanted. We moved the ball, got wide open shots and knocked them down.”
McTague was quick to praise his team’s unselfish nature and ability to share the basketball.
“It’s no secret Monty’s going to draw extra attention every night,” McTague said. “That leaves the other guys open for their opportunities. We’ve got a lot of guys that can make plays and make shots. They’re unselfish, they make the extra pass, they drive and kick it out and they do a really good job of just finding each other. For the most part, we shot rhythm jumpshots all night long.”
Glendale took a comfortable, 50-23 lead into the break and then, somehow, managed to find another gear.
Putting a stamp on the statement win, the Falcons ripped off a 28-11 run in the third quarter behind Johal and junior Winston Quinn.
Johal scored a game-high 22 points for the Falcons and was joined by three others in double figures, including Davis (17), senior Jordan Walton (13) and Quinn (12).
Waynesville was led by Carson Cavalier’s 11 points.
Despite the disappointing loss, Pilz welcomed the teaching opportunity and chance to improve in the weeks to come.
“That’s not indicative of our team, tonight,” Pilz said. “We’re a better basketball team, and we will learn a lot from this and bounce back. In life, sometimes, there’s a lot of hard days, and you’ve got to suck it up and get back to work. We’ll get back to practice and see if we can get better.”
Both teams are back in action Tuesday, Jan. 30. Glendale (12-5) travels to Ozark, while Waynesville (11-6) hosts Bolivar.
Varsity Final: Glendale – 82, Waynesville – 38
Glendale 27 23 28 04 — 82
Waynesville 11 12 11 04 — 38
Glendale scoring: Monte Johal – 22, Jaxon Davis – 17, Jordan Walton – 13, Winston Quinn – 12, Garrett Freeman – 7, Dylan Metivier – 6, Jordan Kerr – 3, Jadon Gilpin – 2
Waynesville scoring: Carson Cavalier – 11, Gunner Rees – 8, Tanner Simpson – 6, Tahja Stewart – 4, Shaq Fregiste – 3, Zeke Rogers – 3, Caleb Barnes – 3
Frosh Final: Waynesville – 54, Glendale – 52
(AJ Martin – 13 points)
JV Final: Waynesville – 76, Glendale – 73
(Jacob Evans – 18 points)
