Senior Kaden Risenhoover scored 24 points and fellow senior Adam Jenkinson added 22 more to help lead the Red Devils to a 73-53 victory over the Altamont Longhorns on Thursday night, Dec. 12 in Moab.
The Red Devils built a comfortable lead early and never trailed, pulling away for good early in the second half after the Longhorns battled back to stay close in the first half. Grand led 35-29 at halftime before a 10-0 run and a big third quarter from Jenkinson put the game out of reach. Jenkinson began the half with a pair of free-throws and after a put-back layup by Risenhoover, he hit a pair of 3-pointers. Altamont broke up the run with a bucket, then Jenkinson hit another 3-pointer to give himself 11 points in the quarter and give the Red Devils a 48-31 advantage. For the contest, Jenkinson hit six 3-pointers and went a perfect 4-for-4 from the line.
Jenkinson said he was confident in his shooting ability on Thursday.
“I was confident with my shot and the team had confidence in my shooting and me running the offense,” he said. “I’ve been a little off lately so it felt good to get it going.”
Risenhoover picked up the fourth quarter where Jenkinson left off in the third, scoring 10 of his 24 points in the final frame to finish off the Longhorns.
Risenhoover also scored 10 points in the first quarter as the Red Devils scored the game’s first 8 points on the way to an 18-13 lead. Senior Koi Cook hit a layup to start the game and after several missed shots for Grand, senior Trevor Bertuzzi followed with a bucket. Risenhoover followed with a pair of buckets before Altamont went on a 9-2 run to pull within 1 point at 10-9. After the foes traded buckets to make the score 12-11, The Red Devils mounted an 8-2 run into the second quarter.
“We came out a little flat,” Jenkinson said. “Kaden really stepped up and got us going tonight.”
The Longhorns pulled within 1 point at 22-21 near the middle of the quarter before Jenkinson connected on a 3-pointer to swing the momentum again.
“When they got close, we realized we needed to step up,” Jenkinson said.
Red Devil basketball coach Brook Shumway said he leans on players like Risenhoover, Jenkinson and senior Hunter Stitzer, who scored 9 points against the Longhorns, to do the bulk of the shooting and scoring.
“They’re both captains and they’re two of our best shooters,” he said of Jenkinson and Risenhoover. “I expect that kind of game out of ’em.”
The Red Devils also got 6 points from junior Tanner White, 4 points from Cook and 2 points apiece from Bertuzzi, juniors Jasen Christensen and Kyler Nelson and sophomore Brayden Ward.
The Red Devils got themselves in foul trouble, especially in the first and third quarter, committing seven fouls in each quarter to put the Longhorns in the bonus the entire second and fourth quarters. Cook and Bertuzzi each committed multiple fouls early in the first quarter and sat out the rest of the first half in foul trouble.
“Other people have to step up,” Red Devil boys basketball coach Brook Shumway said. “It didn’t hurt us tonight against Altamont, but it will later on in the season when we play tougher opponents.”
Despite the Red Devils’ problem with fouls, they matched the Longhorns from the stripe, going 9-for-11 compared to 9-for-17 by Altamont; the Red Devils did not attempt a free throw in the second quarter.
Despite the decisive victory, Shumway pointed out a pair of glaring weaknesses the Red Devils must shore up to be successful as the season progresses.
“We couldn’t stop penetration and we didn’t rebound at all,” he said. “It seems like we had players standing and watching, especially on the defensive end.”
The Red Devils, who own a 2-1 record so far in the season, were scheduled to play at Monticello on Tuesday, Dec. 17. They are scheduled to play host to Green River on Thursday, Dec. 19 with the varsity contest scheduled to tip off at 7 p.m.
“I was confident with my shot and the team had confidence in my shooting and me running the offense.”
When: 7 p.m., Thursday, Dec. 19
Where: Grand County High School, 608 S. 400 East
