By Dave Vrbas

The Wauneta Breeze

Hayes Center boys remain undefeated after breezing to a victory over the Broncs in a much-anticipated matchup in front of a packed house in Hayes Center on Saturday.

The clash between the two rival teams ended up a little more lopsided than previously expected, with Hayes Center pulling away early in the game and cruising to a 17-point win behind Keifer Messersmith’s 24-point performance.

The night before, the Broncos had pushed their record to an unbeaten 3-0 with a huge, 67-27 win over South Platte at home.

Stat boxes for both games are on page 7 this week.

Hayes Center hands Broncos first loss of season on the road

Hayes Center rallied behind Keifer Messersmith’s 10 second-quarter points to post a 29-19 lead before halftime and continued to tack onto their ample lead throughout the second half.

With Drew Harris in foul trouble before the first quarter drew to a close, the Bronco junior — who was averaging 24.3 points per game after the first three contests of the season — was hindered by fear of fouling out of the game before halftime.

Hayes Center piled onto a 8-6 lead after the first quarter by hauling out a 21-13 second quarter defensive and offensive onslaught. The Broncos kept things fairly even throughout the second half, dropping the 60-43 match to the 6-0 Cards.

Harris and Ricky Martin led the Bronco offense with 11 points each. They were helped out in scoring with eight points from Chris Bartels, six from Myles West, three apiece from Ryan Fischer and Bo Fanning, and a free throw from Logan Bischoff.

The Broncos had a chance to even the score during the first half, when they hit only three of their 13 free throw opportunities before the half ended. In the second half, the Broncos hit seven of their nine shots from the line.

In rebounding, the Cardinals used height to their advantage on the boards, grabbing 34 rebounds to the Broncos’ 23.

Drubbing of South Platte

Running out to a 33-15 halftime lead, the Broncos took a swift 67-27 win over the South Platte Knights at home on Friday.

Jumping out to a 21-12 first-quarter lead behind a combined 14 points from West and Bartels, the Broncos took an early lead and were never challenged in the contest.

Harris led all scorers once again with 21 points on the night. Bartels chipped in 14 points and West finished with 11 to round out double-digit scorers.

Martin put in nine points, Fanning seven, Jacob Maris three and Fischer two.

In a game of few fouls from South Platte, the Broncos hit two of only five free throw opportunities.

Jayvee action

The Bronco jayvees are also 3-1 after the weekend, taking a win over South Platte and losing at Hayes Center to the Cardinals.

In the South Platte match, the Broncos strolled away with a 31-8 win. Jacob Maris ripped the nets with 14 points in the two-quarter game, nailing four treys in the first eight minutes of play.

Other Bronco scorers were Landen Lawless with six, Bischoff with five, and John Christner, Reese West and Bo Fanning with two each.

At Hayes Center, the Broncos lost their first jayvee game of the season, 42-29. Reese West led with seven points. Maris and Lawless both put in five points each, Fanning and Jack McGraw four apiece, and Bischoff and Christner two each.

Upcoming action

After the five-day moratorium on winter sports, the Broncos will be in action at the Brady Holiday Tournament on Monday-Tuesday, Dec. 28-29.

Their first game of the tourney will be against 0-6 Anselmo-Merna on Monday afternoon at noon/1 p.m. CT.