Central boys rough up Ste. Gen 58-26

~ Central raced OUT to a big lead early and cruised from there against Ste. Gen

After losing to Ste. Genevieve last year, the Central High School boys basketball team prepared for a battle.

Little did the Tigers know avenging that defeat would be so easy.

With Ste. Genevieve rebuilding and Central surging, the Tigers blistered the visiting Dragons 58-26 on Tuesday night.

"We didn't think it would be easy since they beat us last year," senior guard Terrance Howard said. "But we didn't want to lose at home."

Central's Terrance Howard drives against Ste. Genevieve's Brock Meyer during the fourth quarter Tuesday.

Junior guard Andrew Williams said he didn't know how strong the Dragons were this year, although he remembered them as being solid last season.

"I remember they beat us in a tough game. They had a good team last year," Williams said. "We were prepared not to take it for granted."

The Tigers continued their best start under fourth-year coach Drew Church as they improved to 8-3. Ste. Genevieve fell to 5-7.

"Defensively I thought we played well. We were able to put a lot of pressure on them, which led to some steals and some offense," said Church, whose squad won 10 games all of last season. "Everybody contributed. I thought it was a good team effort."

Junior forward James Lane led Central offensively with 14 points, 12 coming in a first half that ended with Central up 33-12.

Senior guard Kevin Casasola scored 13 points, nine during a third quarter that ended with the Tigers holding a whopping 52-18 lead. Howard added 10 points in the game.

"I think we played good," said Williams, who hit two of Central's three 3-pointers and scored all eight of his points in the first half. "We took care of the ball and we got a lot of steals. We got the ball to Kevin and Terrance and Blake [Ozbun] and let them run for easy baskets."

Easy buckets were a prevailing theme for Central, which scored 19 of its 20 2-point baskets from within a few feet of the hoop.

That total included numerous fast-break layups and put-backs, along with times when the Tigers got the ball inside to the 6-foot-5 Lane for easy baskets.

"We had a size advantage and we were able to get the ball inside to James," Church said. "Our team is very unselfish. Nobody cares who scores."

Central ended the first quarter on an 11-0 run to lead 17-4.

Ste. Genevieve hit a 3-pointer to start the second period, then went scoreless for more than six minutes as the Tigers put up 16 straight points to break things open at 33-7.

Lane had the final eight points of that 16-0 burst, including a fast-break dunk.

Church said that despite such a lopsided game, he focuses on how well the Tigers execute and perform the fundamentals they work on during practice.

"Regardless of who you're playing, you have to execute. Otherwise you start bad habits," Church said. "You have to respect every opponent. We don't overlook anybody."

Said Howard: "We focused on fundamentals. We focused on playing good defense and getting offense from our defense."

Church said he is pleased with the progress the Tigers continue to make. Central is having one of its better seasons in a while, which includes finishing second in the recent Southeast Missourian Christmas Tournament.

"They're working hard and doing what we ask them to do," Church said.

Added Howard: "I feel like we continue to improve. We play unselfish and try to get better every day."

Central returns to action Saturday, hosting its annual Tiger Shootout that features four games. Central plays Seckman at 4:30 p.m.

Ste. Genevieve 4 8 6 8 -- 26

Central 17 16 19 6 -- 58

STE. GENEVIEVE (26) -- Keith Pfaff 4, Brock Meyer 11, Trevor Billings 2, Jacob Kent 2, Jacob Turek 4, Brendan Weiler 3. FG 10, FT 4-5, F 10. (3-pointers: Meyer 2. Fouled out: none)

CENTRAL (58) -- James Lane 14, Terrance Howard 10, Kevin Casasola 13, Andrew Williams 8, Josh Compas 2, Blake Ozbun 5, Zach Boerboom 6. FG 23, FT 9-12, F 8. (3-pointers: Casasola 1, Williams 2. Fouled out: none)