The Nemaha Central Middle School boys basketball season has begun with strong strides. This season the Thunder has 9 eighth grade boys and 8 seventh grade boys out. The managers for this year’s team include Daniel Childress, Cameron Strathman, and Jordan Lewis. The coaches are Cory Bass, Schuyler Mayberry, and Todd Krause. Their season started Monday, January 6th, with a game at Jeff West.
The eighth grade A-team dominated in their game. In the first quarter, the Thunder took a solid lead with a score of 10-5. The Thunder would look even more amazing in the second quarter as the Thunder’s defense would allow no points at all, and the offense looked solid with 14 points. At halftime the Thunder lead was 24-5.
Their third quarter looked just as impressive as the last, as the Thunder scored 13 points and allowed the Tigers only 2 points. With the running clock on, the Thunder’s offense would slow down, only scoring 6 points in the fourth. Jeff West would hit some good shots, scoring 8 points in the fourth. In the end, the eighth grade A team would take their first win of the new season with a score of 43-15.
The first quarter of the eighth grade B-team started off a close game with good plays from both sides, scoring 5 for NC and 6 for Jeff West. NC came back with determination in the second quarter and made 9 points while allowing their opponents to only make 5. NC had the lead at halftime with a score of 14-11.
Both teams came back to the third quarter with strong defenses with NC scoring 3 points and Jeff West scoring 2. NC blasted off the last quarter scoring 11 points while only allowing the Tigers 2 points. Both teams played well, but the NC B-team took home a win with a final score of 28-15.
“They were pretty good team games for our first game of the new season,” said Josh Gonzalez.
The seventh grade A-team started the game holding their own against Jeff West. In the first quarter of the game, NC scored 4 points while the Tigers also scored 4 points. In the second quarter, NC came out with fire in their eyes scoring 5 points and only allowing the Tigers to score 2 points. The halftime score of the game was 9-6 with NC ahead.
The Tigers came out in the third quarter scoring 6 points, while NC only managed to score 1 point. NC knew they needed to score in the final quarter, but they came up short only scoring 3 points. The Tigers were able to score 6 points in the quarter to get the victory. The Thunder boys worked hard, but unfortunately they came up a little short with a final score of 13-18.
The seventh-grade B team started off trying to figure out the game of basketball and how to run their plays. They managed to score 2 points in the first quarter while holding the Tigers to 2 points. The next quarter was about the same as the first one. The Thunder team managed to hold off the Tigers and keep them from scoring, while adding 2 points of their own. The halftime score was 4-2 with the Thunder team on top.
In the third quarter, NC was successful at doubling their score. They played better offense and managed to score 4 points, while keeping the Tigers at bay only allowing them to score 2 points. The fourth quarter was the best offensive quarter for the Thunder team as they scored 6 points. The Thunder defense held the Tigers to 2 points again. Overall, the Thunder team was victorious in this game against Jeff West. The seventh grade B-team won picking up their first win of the season with a score of 14-6.
“The first game was pretty awesome. It was more fun than some of the other sports that I have played,” said Abram Keim.
Overall, the Thunder basketball team is off to a great season with winning 3 out of 4 games.