By David Rogers. BOONE, N.C. — If nothing else, Watauga got to show off the men’s team roster depth on Feb. 19, playing St. Stephens for the third time since Jan. 22, a 54-43 loss, before going on a tear through the second half of the NWC regular season schedule, including a hard-fought 71-63 win on Feb. 13. With a league tournament blowout on Feb. 19, 74-43, to advance to the tournament final on Feb. 20, against South Caldwell, the Pioneers have completed a six-game winning streak.
“We want to be playing our best basketball in February,” said Pioneer head coach Bryson Payne after the tournament semifinal romp past the Indians. “I can’t say enough about the defensive efforts tonight by senior guard Bowen Mayo and senior forward Brady Lindenmuth. Defense may not always been evident in the stat lines, but they took on some tough challenges tonight.”
With 9 rebounds and 8 points, Lindenmuth was eyeing a double-double, while Mayo had a complete stat line of 6 points, 4 rebounds, 5 assists and 3 steals.
Altogether, the Pioneers’ starters and normal rotational players blew the game open by the end of the third quarter (59-34), allowing the rest of the roster to get valuable court time as Watauga heads into the Feb. 20 Northwestern Conference tournament final and beyond, into the state 6A playoffs.
Senior starting guard Evan Burroughs poured in a game-high 19 points, while freshman forward Jaden McInnis came off the bench to add 11 points, including a thunderous dunk in the final stanza after senior teammate Jackson Love had put on a slamma jamma show a few moments earlier.
Love and senior guard Cade Keller stepped back from the spotlight in this game, often among any particular game’s offensive stars. Love was credited with 4 assists to go with 6 points and 3 rebounds. Keller’s 7 points were accentuated by 5 assists and a pair of steals.
Along with McInnis, Watauga may have gotten a glimpse of the team’s future with freshman guard Cole Lewis coming off the bench in the final stanza to score 7 points in five minutes. Lewis has a playing style similar to senior Cade Keller: dangerously accurate from 3-point land but unafraid to cut through the lane for a driving layup over and around larger opponents.
“It is fun playing with all these guys,” said a modest Burroughs after his game-high 19 points scored.
With the win, Watauga will now play South Caldwell in the tournament finale on Feb. 20, with tipoff scheduled for 8 p.m. The tournament’s No.-2 seeded Watauga will face a No. 4 seed in South Caldwell after the Spartans upset No. 1 seeded Freedom on Feb. 18 in the other men’s semifinal, 62-55.
Hosted by Watauga, the tournament finals on Feb. 20 will include the following slate of championship games:
- 4 p.m. – Women’s JV Championship: No. 1 McDowell vs. No. 2 Alexander Central
- 5:15 p.m. – Men’s JV Championship: No. 1 Watauga vs. No. 2 Freedom
- 6:30 p.m. – Women’s Varsity Championship: No. 1 McDowell vs. No. 2 Alexander Central
- 8 p.m. – Men’s Varsity Championship: No. 2 Watauga vs. No. 4 South Caldwell
KEY PERFORMERS, WATAUGA VS. ST. STEPHENS
- WAT – Evan Burroughs: 19 points, 3 rebounds, 1 assist, 2 steals
- WAT – Jaden McInnis: 11 points, 1 rebound
- WAT – Brady Lindenmuth: 8 points, 9 rebounds
- WAT – Bowen Mayo: 6 points, 4 rebounds, 5 assists, 3 steals
- WAT – Jackson Love: 6 points, 3 rebounds, 4 assists
- WAT – Cade Keller: 7 points, 1 rebound, 5 assists, 2 steals
- WAT – Cole Lewis: 7 points
- WAT – Eli Bishop: 4 points, 4 rebounds,
- WAT – Wit Williamson: 2 points, 2 rebounds, 3 assists, 3 steals
- STST – Chatham Donley: 10 points, 2 assists, 1 rebound
- STST – Isaac Long: 9 points
- STST – JaChavis Sherrill: 4 points, 5 rebounds, 1 assist, 1 blocked shot, 1 steal
- STST – Alan Wilson: 4 points, 5 rebounds, 3 assists
- STST – Maddox Zabian: 9 points, 3 rebounds, 2 assists, 2 steals
