DALTON, Mass. – The Wahconah boys basketball team helped christen its new court in style Monday with a 64-52 win over Monument Mountain.
Not only was it the home opener for Wahconah, it also the first boys basketball game played in the new gymnasium.
It was a lackluster start for both teams as they found it tough to score. Neither team shot the ball well to begin the game and it took a quarter for both teams to really settle in.
Fortunately for the hosts (3-0) they were up to the task on the defensive end, getting into passing lanes and really making themselves big in the zone. Wahconsh forced a few turnovers and really had the Spartans going quicker than they would have liked. Wahconah finished the quarter up 7-6.
“I was proud how we gutted it out in the first quarter, I said to the guys we can’t shoot much worse and with seven points we had a one-point lead.” Wahconah coach Dustin Belcher said. “We settled in and it was all about effort and attitude and our guys did a good job with that all night.”
The scoring really started with Brody Calvert, who had a game-high 33 points, including 14 in the second quarter alone. Pat Mclaughlin had 13 of his own and Jesse Chapman pitched in with 11. Wahconah started to get a little more patient on offense and really attacked Monument, getting to the hoop for some easy buckets.
Belcher’s team was able to stretch the lead to eight giving themselves a 32-24 lead at the break. Calvert contributed not only his scoring but also his playmaking ability and energy on the defensive end.
“We go as Brody goes, and a few times tonight he just had to take over.” Belcher said. “What I like about his game is he’s the first guy to look to facilitate and dish the ball, tonight we needed him to score and he did that.”
Monument wouldn’t go away, and right out the hal ftime it had a nice little 4-0 run that forced Wahconah into an early timeout to regroup. Wahconah was able to right the ship and continue to play its brand of basketball.
Khalil Carlson led three Spartans in double figures with 15 points. Kyle Wellenkamp scored 13, and Kenzel Chandler-Ellerbee added 12.
It seemed every time Monument Mountain looked like it was finally going to make a run and take the lead, Wahconah had an answer. For most of the night it was Calvert, but the good ball movement all around helped make things a lot easier scoring.
Wahconah went into the fourth quarter with a five-point lead and continued to keep that distance throughout the remainder of the game. Wahconah led for almost the entire game and with a five-point lead with with minutes left, Jesse Chapman knocked down a big shot to bring the lead back up to seven and essentially close the door on Monument.
Calvert once again used his speed to get to the rim for the score and foul with a minute left in the game. He missed the free throw but get his own rebound and put back. Monument played the foul game and some free throws for Wahconah sealed the game for good.
“I watched Monument play Hoosac, and they were down about 7 with 45 seconds to go and they sent it into overtime,” Belcher said “They made a lot of runs, so one thing I told these guys in practice is they are capable of making runs so when they do we need to make a stop and make a big bucket and that’s what we did tonight.”
Wahconah will take a nice little break during the holidays and come back and face Drury on the road Dec. 30. Monument Mountain will look to end this two-game skid on Wednesday as it takes on Lenox on the road.
