Buchholz Defeats Santa Fe In Hoops

The Buchholz boys basketball team defeated Santa Fe, 53-46, at Bud Seymour Gymnasium on Thursday. The Bobcats pulled through at the night’s end, securing their second win of the season.

Keeping it Close

In the first half, the teams fought hard to stay on top. Buchholz’s Zion Newkirk was the first to put his team on the scoreboard, 2-0, with a layup. This started the neck-and-neck battle between the Bobcats (2-0) and the Raiders (1-2), leaving them tied 10-10 at the close of the first quarter.

In the second quarter, Santa Fe put up 10 more points leaving it facing a 25-20 deficit at halftime.

While both teams duked it out on offense, an aggressive defense was quite apparent throughout the night. Each team racked up more than 20 fouls. Foul shots gave both teams many opportunities to score. However, this is where Santa Fe struggled. The Raiders were 13 for 25 in free throws made. Coach Glen Banks mentioned the negative impact of these missed opportunities, but applauded the effort his team made in all other aspects:

“We missed like 15 free throws so if we would have made those, we would have won the game. So, I’m mad about that but the effort, I can’t be mad at that.”

Bobcats Finish Strong

Throughout the majority of the game, Santa Fe’s defense played a full-court press. However, Buchholz’s offense was just too strong for the Raiders. Santa Fe quickly fell behind in the latter half of the game.

The end of the third quarter brought the Bobcats ahead, 36-27. The Raiders attempted to bounce back with scoring shots from several players, including brothers Latrell and Braylon Guyden. Braylon was the top scorer of his team with 19 points.

However, double digits from Santa Fe’s sharpshooter, Braylon Guyden, was not enough to keep up.

Developing the Young Team

Santa Fe’s team put out a strong performance given its youth. Banks mentioned they were without nine seniors from the previous season, so the chemistry is new. Banks gave accolades to freshman starting point guard Latrell Guyden.

“He did awesome. The more games we get under our belt, the better we can become and the better he will become. So that’s exciting to me.”

Banks also said he liked his team’s performance.

“My motto is every time you come in the gym, if it’s practice or a game, we wanna be better than the time before. This game, I felt we were better than the other two times we played.”

Looking Forward

The Raiders will play at the Newberry Panthers at 7:30 p.m. Monday. Buchholz will play at Gainesville High at 7:30 p.m. Friday.