by Malcolm Butler
Choudrant (11-5) used a strong second half to pull away from Calvin 66-51 Tuesday night at CHS Gymnasium.
Senior Brayden Pye was simply too much for the Cougars, scoring 11 of his game-high 22 points in the fourth quarter. Pye was relentless in the paint on both ends of the floor for head coach Ryan Smith’s team.
“Brayden is great,” said Smith. “He has played all four years of his high school career. He is always trying to do what we want him to do. This year we want him to focus around the rim.
“The last few years we have had him doing different things. But this year we have really solid guards so we want him down low. He is relentless, and he is a hard worker.”
Calvin got to experience how relentless on Tuesday night.
Pye drew foul after foul in the lane, going to the free throw line 11 times on the night (making six) as he also converted eight field goals from the paint … many off offensive rebounds.
The Aggies came out of the starting blocks slow, trailing 17-10 after the Cougars hit the first shot of the second quarter with 7 minutes to play. That’s when Choudrant flipped the proverbial script.
A Benton Case bucket followed by a Pye layup and a Toby Cooper three-pointer tied the game at 17-17. Turner Rhodes then drained a corner three-pointer with 2:54 to play before the half as the Aggies grabbed their first lead since it was 1-0.
Much of the run, which eventually grew to 14-0, was due to the Aggies pressing defense causing Calvin issues.
“We don’t press a lot,” said Smith. “We try to be selective when we press. Sometimes you just have a gut feeling to try to do something different. We do have some quick guards, and we have the ability to turn opponents over and turn it into some easy opportunities.
“I feel like we play better when we have momentum, especially at home. Anytime we can build positive momentum you way, it helps the ball go in the basket a little easier. We try to do different things at different times.”
Neither team came out of the halftime lockerroom clicking offensively. The Aggies held a 29-23 advantage midway through the third quarter when Pye ignited another Choudrant run with a layup followed by a Cooper three-pointer.
Jackson Ambrose scored five points during another quick 7-0 run as Choudrant’s lead ballooned to 41-23 with just over two minutes to play in the third quarter.
Calvin would get no closer than 14 points the rest of the way as the Aggies biggest lead came at 62-42 on a conventional three-point play by Pye with 2:26 to play in the contest.
Cooper added 12 points and Clarence Menyweather scored 11 for the Aggies.
Alex Peters led Calvin with 17 points while Aden Caskey added 13 points.
Choudrant will face Albany next at the West Ouachita Tournament.
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