Western Boone Jr. - Sr. High School

LEBANON — The Western Boone boys basketball team ran into a buzz saw on Tuesday night in the Sectional 25 opener against Danville. The second-ranked Warriors had one of the most impressive offensive first halves you will see at any level, starting 9-of-9 from 3 and 20-of-21 from the field overall as they built sizeable lead en route to a 75-34 win. “I really think their senior experience really helped out,” Western Boone head coach Dustin Oakley said. “They’re a really good team, they are No. 2 for a reason. They got hot in the first half and that’s what we have to live with. We were trying to control their inside game and make them hit some outside shots. They were only hitting about four a game, and it was just one of those things. But credit to them tonight.” The teams were feeling each other out through the first couple of possessions, with a Tristyn Faulk putback bringing the Stars within 4-3 a couple minutes into the game. But then Danville got rolling. They hit a 3-pointer from the corner on the ensuing possession, went on a 25-4 run to end the quarter. The run continued into the second quarter, as the Warriors out-scored the Stars 24-6 in the frame. Danville made of their first 21 shots, and their only miss they got the offensive rebound and put back. Zachary Waits and Caden Collins were especially troublesome for the Stars’ defense. Waits hit six 3-pointers in the first half, scoring all 20 of his points. Collins scored 17 of his 19 points before the break. “It was a weird feeling because the first couple of minutes it is 4-3, we got (second-leading scorer Jace) Scrafton with two fouls and got the pace we wanted,” Oakley said. “Then it got bad really quick. Waits hit three or four in a row really quick and it was just unreal. But he’s a good player, he has experience and when Scrafton went out someone needed to step up and he did. They just have weapons nonstop.” The running clock was in effect throughout the second half, but even with little chance of a comeback, the Stars came back and played better in the second half. Oakley said the big thing they talked about at halftime was playing with pride, and while the score wasn’t what they wanted it to be, they wanted to show they were better than the first half. They were able to win the third quarter and only lost the half by a point while Danville didn’t take their foot off the gas until deep in the fourth quarter. “We said we could just throw in the towel and quit, or keep playing,” Oakley said. “Our offense was better and we just said we have to put our heads down and go through the chest. If we got offensive fouls, so be it, we had to get the rim. We had better ball movement, were stronger in the paint and did a nice job. It was just a huge swing in the first half with those 3s and we had no momentum offensively to keep up with what they were doing.” Marcus Fortner led the Stars with 10 points, with Gavin Hawkins having nine and Luke Adkins eight. Western Boone graduates Drew Gott, Philip Talbott and Carter Hanna, but returns the rest of the program. “I will remember how they prepared every week,” Oakley said. “It felt like we were 18-5 – they were always excited for the next game and wanted to win. They had a different type of fight and confidence about them as a group overall. We showed that in the second half tonight. They represented the program and school well. There were a lot of hard situations with losses and injuries, but they they had positive attitudes, stuck together with our staff and did a nice job.” Will Willems is the Sports Editor of the Lebanon Reporter. Follow him on Twitter @Will_Willems.