Ventura wins the east

No stopping him
Ventura’s Tyler Betz is on his way to scoring 29 points in Ventura’s victory over Clay Central-Everly on Thursday, Dec. 29.  -Reporter photo

It was a huge win for the Ventura boys basketball team
when they traveled to Clay Central-Everly on Thursday, Dec. 20, for an east versus west showdown in the Cornbelt Conference. CCE was undefeated in the West division, while Ventura led the East division.
“We went on the road and showed that we can beat a talented team,” said Ventura Coach Nick Schauf, whose team won 76-58. “We handled their run and jump style press and were able to get to the free throw line.”
The Vikings jumped to an early 15-9 lead in the first quarter. The nets were on fire on both sides of the floor in a high scoring second quarter. The Mavericks picked up 22 points to Ventura’s 20, for a 35-31 halftime score. The Vikings kept up the momentum in the third quarter, sinking 25 points to CCE’s 14. The fourth quarter was more of the same for the final Ventura victory.
Junior Tyler Betz was on fire for the Vikings, collecting a season high 29 points. Cody Kadolph also had a good night with 19 points. The rest of the scoring was more balanced. Josh Henely picked up nine points, Tyler Peterson and Brian Mostrom each had six points and Aaron Christians had five.
The Ventura defense did a good job containing CCE’s shooters. The Mavericks have averaged about 60 points a game and the Vikings held them below their average.
“Our dedication in the weight room really paid off, because we were very strong inside,” said Schauf.
Betz also led the group in rebounds with 11 and he grabbed two steals. Kadolph had seven rebounds, three blocked shots and five assists. Peterson had six rebounds and five assists.
“I am really proud of this team because night in and night out know one cares who gets the points. The other coaches and I are very thankful to have a team that listens to what we have to say and works very hard all the time.”
The Vikings headed into the Christmas break with a 5-1 overall record and a 4-0 conference mark. Ventura resumes play on Thursday, Jan. 3, for a non-conference showdown with Sheffield-Chapin/Meservey-Thornton.