CORTEZ – The visiting Broncos weren’t used to losing – period.
San Juan’s roster, chock-full of physically imposing athletes from the school’s dynastic football state championship run – five in a row after they dismantled Utah’s 2A classification again this fall – looked like trouble for the Panthers. Mike Hall’s team couldn’t have cared less.
After a back-and-forth opening quarter, M-CHS (2-0) seized control in its second consecutive home contest with a dominant middle 16 minutes – the Panthers controlled the tempo, won the rebounding battle against a taller San Juan lineup and kept composure to outscore San Juan 40-18 in the second and third quarters on their way to a comfortable 71-40 win.
The Broncos (4-2) never found an answer for sophomore sensation Ah-dae Lang, who ran rampant against the San Juan defense on his way to a career-high 28 points. Junior Trey Hall scored 17 points despite dealing with foul trouble for most of the night, while senior Trace Hartsoe scored eight of his dozen points in a third-quarter stretch that put the game away.
“I told myself ‘go be a leader out there,’” said Lang, who elevated his game with Hall on the bench with two fouls in the first quarter, “and Coach Hall trusts me with the ball.”
M-CHS junior Asher Bennetts, tasked with battling 6-foot-4 senior Tripp Palmer – San Juan’s leading scorer – gave the Bronco post player fits all night, limiting him well below his season scoring average and to one basket in the second half. A wave of Panther reserves kept up the interior intensity when Bennetts wasn’t on the floor, with junior Kyler Wyatt and sophomore Justin Bane limiting the visitors to one look at the basket on most trips down the floor.
Six Panthers 3-pointers – two apiece from Lang, Hall and sophomore Royce Watts – kept the San Juan defensive zone honest, but most of the damage came attacking the basket, where Lang and Hall either scored or got fouled on drives down the lane. Lang scored eight points in each of the first three quarters to surpass his previous career high of 18 points set in the Panthers’ season-opening win over Aztec.
“I worked hard this offseason learning to be more aggressive – if I see an opening, I’m going to attack it,” said Lang, who’s added an extra layer to his game along with his deadly perimeter shooting.
The Panthers led 21-18 after eight minutes, rallying from an early deficit after Broncos senior wing Cole Duke tallied eight of his team-high 12 points in the opening frame. M-CHS shut Duke down for the rest of the night, limiting the Broncos to just nine total field goals over the final three quarters combined.
Watts scored six points for Hall’s squad, while senior Wyatt Oliver chipped in with a pair of baskets. Duke led the Broncos with 12 points, while Palmer scored 10 and fellow senior Baylor Nielson added seven.
“I’m proud of this team – I think we can go far,” said Lang, praising the team’s chemistry and clear roles.
With the bright start, M-CHS now hits the road to Gallup, New Mexico, for a Friday night encounter with Rehoboth Christian before the Panthers journey to Grand Junction for a series of games over the weekend of Dec. 18-20.
