Broncos fall to Lions at home

Freshman Sam Page had nine points in Boyd's loss Saturday.

Boyd gave its all and got another Herculean effort from Christian Rogers, but it wasn’t enough to beat Daniel One Academy Saturday night. The Broncos fell 64-60 at home, dropping to 9-16 overall this season.

Rogers was again sensational offensively, regularly beating double and triple teams to score 39 points. Turnovers proved to be the team’s Achilles Heel though against the Lions.

“We had 21 assists on 24 baskets, which tells us we shared the ball well, but 24 turnovers is the story,” said coach Chris Perry.

Boyd was looking to come back in a big away against the Lions, who beat the Broncos by 35 back in November. For long stretches, it looked like the Broncos may be able to get their revenge by relying on Rogers.

The junior, who recently had his name added to the 1,000-point banner at JK Stanley Gymnasium, was too much for the Lions to handle on the block. Rogers had 18 points by halftime, often setting up shop down low and waiting for one of his teammates to come through with a nifty pass that resulted in a layup. Rogers finished with a double-double, adding a team-high 12 rebounds Saturday.

When the Lions decided to focus the majority of their defense to stopping Rogers, the Broncos starting firing away from deep. Freshman Sam Page hit three 3-pointers in the contest, while Cameron Chilcutt drilled two. Chilcutt and Page also tied for the team lead in assists, handing out six helpers apiece.

Down the stretch, Boyd had opportunities to get within one possession, but the big shot wouldn’t fall or the Lions would come up with a crucial steal. It was a tough way to lose as Boyd shot better (43.6 percent to 40.6 percent), were better at the free-throw line (75 percent to 45.5 percent) outrebounded the Lions (41-30) and had more assists (21-19).

Daniel One Academy dominated one stat though – turnovers. The Lions had just 10 giveaways compared to Boyd’s 24, leading to 22 points off turnovers.

“We played well down the stretch. If we can solve the way we handle ball pressure, we will really get closer to being the team we want to be,” said Perry.

Page finished with nine points, followed by Chilcutt with eight. Jake Jones added two points and five assists while newcomer Ashton Forth had two points and eight rebounds.

Boyd is still waiting to finish games in the TNCAA tournament, but it may have to wait until the team competes in the NACA tournament next week. The WCSA will update the Bronco schedule on our social media pages in the coming days.