Pioneers fall to St. Stephens
by Steve Behr Sports Editor
Watauga's interior defense forced St. Stephens to shoot from
the outside. St. Stephens gladly took up the challenge.
St. Stephens responded by making 12 3-point shots, five from backup guard Logan Starkey. St. Stephens' outside shooting allowed the Indians to take a 68-56 victory Friday night at Lentz-Eggers Gym.
Starkey got hot by making three 3-pointers in the third quarter. The Indians outscored Watauga 21-9 in the period and took a 48-39 lead into the fourth quarter.
“Watauga did a real good job of defending us inside,” St. Stephens coach, and Watauga graduate, Murphy Post said. “Part of the 3-pointers were out of necessity because we couldn't get good looks on the inside, so I was glad we were able to hit.”
Starkey finished with 15 points. His teammate, Zach Houston, also hit three 3-pointers and finished with 15 points. Drew Starkey added 11 points and Chris Hefner, who made two 3-pointers, scored nine.
“We are kind of hit or miss on the 3-pointers and tonight, the second half, Logan, Zach and Chris Hefner got to the spots they like to shoot from and got good looks,” Post said. “They took their time and knocked them down.”
Ben Howser led the Pioneers in scoring with 13 points. Jake Pifer added nine points and Ethan Poulos scored eight.
Watauga fell behind 9-1 at the start of the game, but went on an 8-0 run to finish the first period down 9-8. The Pioneers outscored St. Stephens 20-18 to take a 28-27 halftime lead.
“We got off to a good start, but I think part of it was because Watauga was having trouble hitting shots in the first couple of minutes,” Post said. “It was their Senior Night and they're well-coached and disciplined and I knew they would make a run at it.”
Watauga, seeded fourth in the Northwestern Conference Tournament, hosts No. 5 South Caldwell in the first round of the Northwestern Conference Tournament at 7 p.m. Monday.
St. Stephens 68, Watauga 56
St. Stephens
Farley 0 1-5 1, Craig 0 1-2 1, Hefner 2 3-4 9, James 2 4-6 9, Houston 5 2-3 15, D. Starkey 5 0-0 11, L. Starkey 5 0-0 15, Beasley 1 0-0 2, Bumgarner 2 1-2 5, Gantt 0 0-0 0, Williams 0 0-0 0, Spencer 0 0-1 0. Totals 27 12 22 68.
Watauga
Pifer 3 2-4 9, Poulos 4 0-3 8, Proffitt 0 6-6 6, Howser 5 3-4 13, Chasteen 2 0-0 4, Koppenhaver 1 2-4 4, Sturgill 3 0-1 6, Mackey 1 4-6 6. Totals. 19 17-28 56.
St. Stephens 9 18 21 20 — 68
Watauga 8 20 9 19 — 56
3-point goals—St. Stephens 12 (L. Starkey 5, Houston 3, Hefner 2, James, D. Starkey), Watauga 1 (Pifer). Rebounds—St. Stephens 27 (James 6), Watauga 33 (Sturgill 7). Turnovers—St. Stephens 14, Watauga 15. Total fouls—St. Stephens 21, Watauga 23. Fouled out—Watauga, Pifer, Howser.
St. Stephens responded by making 12 3-point shots, five from backup guard Logan Starkey. St. Stephens' outside shooting allowed the Indians to take a 68-56 victory Friday night at Lentz-Eggers Gym.
Starkey got hot by making three 3-pointers in the third quarter. The Indians outscored Watauga 21-9 in the period and took a 48-39 lead into the fourth quarter.
“Watauga did a real good job of defending us inside,” St. Stephens coach, and Watauga graduate, Murphy Post said. “Part of the 3-pointers were out of necessity because we couldn't get good looks on the inside, so I was glad we were able to hit.”
Starkey finished with 15 points. His teammate, Zach Houston, also hit three 3-pointers and finished with 15 points. Drew Starkey added 11 points and Chris Hefner, who made two 3-pointers, scored nine.
“We are kind of hit or miss on the 3-pointers and tonight, the second half, Logan, Zach and Chris Hefner got to the spots they like to shoot from and got good looks,” Post said. “They took their time and knocked them down.”
Ben Howser led the Pioneers in scoring with 13 points. Jake Pifer added nine points and Ethan Poulos scored eight.
Watauga fell behind 9-1 at the start of the game, but went on an 8-0 run to finish the first period down 9-8. The Pioneers outscored St. Stephens 20-18 to take a 28-27 halftime lead.
“We got off to a good start, but I think part of it was because Watauga was having trouble hitting shots in the first couple of minutes,” Post said. “It was their Senior Night and they're well-coached and disciplined and I knew they would make a run at it.”
Watauga, seeded fourth in the Northwestern Conference Tournament, hosts No. 5 South Caldwell in the first round of the Northwestern Conference Tournament at 7 p.m. Monday.
St. Stephens 68, Watauga 56
St. Stephens
Farley 0 1-5 1, Craig 0 1-2 1, Hefner 2 3-4 9, James 2 4-6 9, Houston 5 2-3 15, D. Starkey 5 0-0 11, L. Starkey 5 0-0 15, Beasley 1 0-0 2, Bumgarner 2 1-2 5, Gantt 0 0-0 0, Williams 0 0-0 0, Spencer 0 0-1 0. Totals 27 12 22 68.
Watauga
Pifer 3 2-4 9, Poulos 4 0-3 8, Proffitt 0 6-6 6, Howser 5 3-4 13, Chasteen 2 0-0 4, Koppenhaver 1 2-4 4, Sturgill 3 0-1 6, Mackey 1 4-6 6. Totals. 19 17-28 56.
St. Stephens 9 18 21 20 — 68
Watauga 8 20 9 19 — 56
3-point goals—St. Stephens 12 (L. Starkey 5, Houston 3, Hefner 2, James, D. Starkey), Watauga 1 (Pifer). Rebounds—St. Stephens 27 (James 6), Watauga 33 (Sturgill 7). Turnovers—St. Stephens 14, Watauga 15. Total fouls—St. Stephens 21, Watauga 23. Fouled out—Watauga, Pifer, Howser.