Broncos Miami Tournament Champions

By Sandy Anderberg

The Broncos finished playing in Miami December 3 and brought home a huge tournament win by getting passed Gruver and West Texas High. The Broncos defeated Gruver 72-45 and skimmed by WT at 67-65.

The Greyhounds were really no competition for the Broncos as they took control on the offensive end, and proved to be too quick for Gruver to stop. Defensively, the Broncos stopped everything the Greyhounds tried and dominated on both ends. Four Broncos finished in double figures and they connected on seven three-pointers in the game. Bryce Grahn put in 15 and Bear Smith had 14. Colt Wood and Chance Lockhart each had 11. Keandre Cortez had seven, Marshal Johnson had six, Jared Jeffers put in five and Damarjae Cortez had three. Grahn had eight assists, and four steals and Lockhart had three assists while Johnson had nine rebounds, and Jeffers and Smith each grabbed six. Smith also had five steals.

The WT game was a more difficult win for the Broncos, but they were able to get by them. The Broncos led throughout, but WT would not quit and finished with three players in double figures.

“Overall, we played well in the tournament,” head coach Brandt Lockhart said. “We were able to win the tournament against a very good West Texas team.”

Lockhart hit four three-pointers and finished with 21 points, while Johnson was strong inside with 19 points. Grahn added 12 to join them in double figures. Wood pumped in seven, D. Cortez had five, Smith two, and K. Cortez 1. Grahn had three assists and three steals and D. Cortez had four assists and two steals. Smith and Johnson each had five rebounds, and Lockhart had two steals.

On Tuesday, the Broncos hosted Vega and they were able to get another big win at 42-17. It was never a contest for the Broncos as they were able to gain a twelve-point lead at the break. The Longhorns could only manage one point in the second quarter against a tough Bronco defense. Grahn finished with 10 points and six steals, and Johnson had nine points, two assists and eight rebounds. Smith also had nine points with four steals and Lockhart put in six points and two assists. Wood had five points and K. Cortez had three. D. Cortez also had seven rebounds. “We did not shoot the ball well, but were able to play very good defense and get them out of their offense,” Lockhart said. “We still need to keep improving in all areas.”

The Broncos will play in the Lockney Tournament December 15-17 and participate in the Bridgeport Tournament December 29-30.