Bulldogs sweep Rocky and Cody

The Lovell Bulldogs kicked off the new year last week with a rivalry game followed by a tough conference opener, both at home.

Friday night, the Bulldogs stopped the Rocky Mountain Grizzlies 57-23, and on Tuesday the Bulldogs edged the second-ranked Cody Broncs 38-33.

The game Friday night was Senior Night for the Bulldogs, which produced a different starting lineup for the team. That fact, combined with some Christmas break cobwebs and strong play by the Grizzlies left the Bulldogs with a relatively narrow 12-7 lead after the first quarter. Lovell went up 9-4 after a 6-0 mini-run capped by a steal and slam dunk by center Owen Walker, but Tucker Jackson drained a three-pointer to keep Rocky close at 9-7 before Lovell guard Matthew Newman closed the quarter with a steal, layup and foul shot.

“We maybe had a little struggle to start, with the new lineup, but also Rocky was game and fought hard,” Lovell coach Shane Durtsche said. “Overall, I was pleased with the way our kids battled. I thought Rocky played well and competed. They’re well coached, and I knew they would be well prepared. I knew they were going to play to their strengths, and they did a good job of that.”

The Bulldogs began to pull away in the second quarter as they forced six turnovers and outscored the Grizzlies 21-6. An 8-0 run to start the quarter put Lovell up 18-12, and after Cole Minchow knocked down a trey for Rocky Mountain to stop the bleeding, Lovell senior shooter Robert Romero answered with a three-pointer of his own to launch a 15-3 run to end the quarter, giving Lovell a 33-13 halftime lead.

 Lovell outscored Rocky Mountain 17-7 in the third quarter to lead 50-20, and as substitutions were made in the fourth, Lovell had a 7-3 edge to win 57-23.

“Again, single-digit quarters came back to haunt us,” Rocky coach Pat Winland said. “Lovell outscored us 25-2 on points off turnovers. That was the story of the game. There are certain passes you can get away with, but not against highly ranked 3A basketball teams. You have to know your competition.”

Durtsche agreed that the Bulldog defense was a key, noting, “When we finally buckled down we got into the passing lanes and pressured on defense. We were able to get some steals, and that got us out in transition, which we’re best at. We got a lot of tipped passes, which always means our hands are active.”

Durtsche said the Bulldog halfcourt offense needs some improvement, noting some “standing around” on Friday, but he liked that his squad had 16 assists.

Winland concluded his thoughts with praise for his alma mater.

“Since I’ve been a head coach, that’s the best Lovell team I’ve coached against,” he said. “They’ve got it all: size, speed, athleticism and a good staff.”

Winland said the Grizz will have plenty of things to work on this week before the Big Horn Basin Classic including close-out defense, shooting and “getting in proper shape for the run we have coming up.”

Walker led the Bulldogs with 14 points, and Newman joined him in double figures with 13. Jace Nicholls and Kaeson Anderson added 9 points each, James Blau 4, Romero and Sam Mayes 3 each and Cash Wassmer 2. Walker pulled down nine rebounds, Nicholls eight, and Anderson led the team with five assists. Newman and Davin Crosby had four steals apiece, and Crosby blocked three shots.

Jackson scored 6 points for the Grizzlies, Minchow and Cooper Winland 5 each, Lafe Files 3 and Alex Hedges and Kellan Jackson 2 apiece. Hedges snared eight rebounds.

Both the Bulldogs and Grizzlies will compete at the Big Horn Basin Classic tournament held in Cowley this week. Friday, Lovell plays Greybull at noon (JVs at 10:30 a.m.) and Wyoming Indian at 6 p.m. (JVs at 4:30). Rocky meets Riverside at 1:30 p.m. (JVs at noon) and Worland at 7:30 p.m. (JVs at 6). Based on the Friday record, teams will be seeded into games Saturday in Cowley and Powell, with the championship game set for 4:30 p.m. in Powell.

Cody win

The Bulldogs survived a physical knock-down, drag-out battle against the visiting Broncs from Cody Tuesday night in a game that saw the Bulldogs build a double-digit lead, only to see Cody battle back.

Cody led 9-6 early, but the Bulldogs closed the first quarter with a power bank shot by Crosby and a drive by Romero to lead 10-9 after one. Cody scored the first two baskets of the second quarter to lead 13-10, but the Bulldogs outscored the Broncs 12-0 the rest of the quarter to lead by nine, 22-13, at intermission. Newman led the charge with three baskets during the run, showing his quickness with open court magic.

Owen Walker soared for a tip-in to start the third quarter for Lovell as the Bulldogs led 24-13, but Cody fought back to trim the lead to seven by the quarter break, 30-23.

The Bulldogs held Cody to a single free throw in the first four minutes of the fourth quarter but had trouble scoring themselves with just a single bucket by Newman. Then while Lovell missed five of six free-throw attempts, Cody put together a 7-1 run to chop the Bulldog lead to two, 33-31, finishing the run with a pretty tear drop by Jaxon Hazel.

Down the stretch, the Bulldogs hit five of six foul shots including two clutch free throws each by Newman and Crosby as Lovell fans breathed a sigh of relief for a 38-33 win.

“I was proud of the way we competed and played defense,” Durtsche said. “I always tell my guys if they play defense and rebound, they have a chance. You’re not always going to make shots, and tonight just happened to be one of those nights, but we hung in there and battled.”

Newman led the Bulldogs with 14 points, and Walker added 8, Nicholls 7, Crosby 6, Romero 2 and Anderson 1.