Monticello’s boys basketball team is still looking for answers.
Western Albemarle’s squad seems to have found at least one — it’s defense can get the job done.
The Warriors rode a rock solid defensive performance on the perimeter and against the Mustangs to a 65-41 victory Thursday night.
“I thought we did a nice job defensively pretty much all game,” said Western coach Darren Maynard. “We had a couple of lapses in the first half but I thought our effort was great.”
The third quarter took Monticello out of it as Western outscored the Mustangs 21-8 in the frame after the game was nearly deadlocked at the break. Six different players scored for the Warriors during that stretch, with Austin Ellis’ 3-point play underneath highlighting the run.
Western managed to draw four charges as a team, including a pair by Will Donnelly, which cut down on the Mustangs’ aggressiveness when attacking off the dribble. That allowed Western to pull away as Monticello settled for jumpshots.
“We’re showing some improvement,” said Monticello coach Robert Shelton. “Three weeks ago this probably would’ve been a little bit worse. The guys are fighting but it’s frustrating for them.”
Ben Turner was rock solid for the Warriors, pairing Parker Morris’ perimeter assault — Morris finished with five 3-pointers in his 19 points — with hard-nosed play in the lane. Turner finished with 16 points and dished out four assists in addition to six rebounds.
“Ben’s playing really well on the inside,” Maynard said. “He’s really taking it hard to the basket and he’s gotten away from some of the fallaways. He’s tough when he’s doing that, when he’s aggressive.”
Monticello’s Jhalil Mosley got off to a red-hot start with an 11-point first quarter when the Mustangs appeared to have a pretty good rhythm going and actually led 17-15. But Mosley slowed down after that and finished with just 13 points on the night. Sam Patterson struggled with foul trouble as he continues his return to the court after not playing basketball for several years, but finished with 11 points.
Monticello managed just 18 points in the second half.
Monticello will try and bounce back Tuesday against Louisa County while the Warriors will hit the road to face Powhatan Friday after a few days of rest.
