The Boyd Bronco offense was off to the races in Friday night’s matchup against the Covenant Academy Lions. Three key Lions were missing from the pack and it allowed the Broncos to gallop away with a convincing 66-30 win over Covenant at McMinnville Civic Center.
Jayden Reno for Boyd led all scorers with a game-high 19 points, most of which came in the paint during the second half.
The Bronco offense controlled the game from the opening tip. Boyd has a frontcourt full of talented players and with three starters out of the rotation, the Lions struggled early.
Isaiah Blanton picked the pocket of the Lion guards and hit the open court running. With no one to stop him, Blanton converted a steal into points. Tyler Beaty dialed up from long distance and connected on a 3-point shot. He knocked down a pair of free throws and finished the opening quarter with five points.
Trey Cantrell added six points in the first for the Bronco offense.
Covenant played from behind and it did not give them much opportunity in the early minutes to set up its offense. Samuel Wright scored his first two points in the opening period. The Lions were led by Jackson Smith with five points. He stepped back behind the 3-point line and fired. The shot was right on target and he also knocked down another shot inside the 3-point line. He led the first quarter for Covenant with five.
After one complete, Covenant trailed 20-7 and in the second Covenant increased its intensity on the defensive end of the floor. Much of the defense focused on Beaty and the ball immediately went to Blanton. The quick first step by Blanton found him at the rim multiple times. He added eight more points. Tyler Pomales and Ethan Phillips connected on a pair of 3-point shots before the half.
The Covenant offense continued its quest to score the basketball despite the difference in size. Lance Curtis ended the first half with five points. Caleb Brown got an open look just long enough to fire a shot right on target. By the end of the half, Boyd led 37-13.
In the second half it was all Reno. Covenant had no answer for him and the ball was fed inside time after time. He added a free throw and finished the quarter with nine points.
Covenant continued to improve and the Lions inched their way forward. Smith stepped back and popped his second 3-point shot of the game. Will Creek fired a shot and found the bottom of the net against the larger Bronco defense. At the end of three, Covenant trailed 52-22.
In the fourth, Boyd kept the ball moving inside the paint to Reno and he added his final six points of the night. Phillips helped extend the lead with an additional five points and with time running out Pomales buried his second 3-pointer.
Brown led the fourth for Covenant with four points and Curtis earned two more points from the free-throw line. Sam Griffin broke free and fired a shot that hit its mark for two points.
BRONCO SCORING – Jayden Reno 19, Ethan Phillips 13, Isaiah Blanton 12, Trey Cantrell 9, Tyler Pomales 6, Tyler Beaty 5, Blaine Wilson 2
LION SCORING – Lance Curtis 8, Jackson Smith 8, Caleb Brown 6, Samuel Wright 4, Will Creek 2, Sam Griffin 2
Reno leads way in Bronco win
