Izard, SJO boys’ basketball rolls in postseason opener

It wasn’t even close.

The St. Joseph-Ogden High School boys’ basketball team picked the perfect time for its most lopsided win this season.

The Spartans, seeded fourth in the Class 2A regional they are hosting, defeated No. 13 Westville 70-22 on Tuesday night during a regional quarterfinal game in St. Joseph.

Now, the Spartans (22-8) will have a quick turnaround before its next game when SJO hosts sixth-seeded Villa Grove/Heritage (21-10) at 7:30 p.m. on Wednesday in a regional semifinal game. VG/H outlasted No. 12 Unity 67-63 in overtime on Tuesday night in a regional quarterfinal game.

SJO bolted out to a 9-0 lead against Westville in the game’s first four minutes before leading 20-2 entering the second quarter. The Spartans only expanded their lead against the Tigers, going into halftime ahead 40-14 and leading 66-22 entering the fourth quarter.

Nine different SJO players scored at least two points during the win against Westville, with senior guard Chance Izard dropping in a game-high 17 points and making 8 of 11 shots from the field.

Junior guard Lukas Hutcherson added 10 points, while senior guard Dade Allinger, senior forward Payton Cain and freshman forward Ty Pence all notched nine points. Senior guard Jordan Kelly and senior forward Conner Hodge chipped in six points, with senior forwards Drew Coursey and Brayden Weaver rounding out the scoring with two points apiece.

If SJO knocks off VG/H on Wednesday night, it would face either No. 1 Bismarck-Henning/Rossville-Alvin (30-0) or No. 11 Oakwood (18-13) at 7 p.m. on Friday in the regional championship game. BHRA and Oakwood kick off Wednesday night’s action at the SJO Regional with a 6 p.m. semifinal game.

Notes: Prior to Tuesday night’s win, SJO closed out the regular season with two losses last week. The Spartans lost 62-53 at Bloomington Central Catholic last Friday night and lost 61-45 at nonconference foe Teutopolis on Feb. 17.

Cain led SJO with 16 points against BCC, with Pence (14 points, 11 rebounds) and Izard (13 points) also hitting double figures.

Izard paced SJO with 20 points in the loss against Teutopolis.

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