The Becker boys basketball team went on the road last Friday and came home with a 82-71 win over Cathedral.

Coach Cory Nuest needed a pair of early timeouts to get the Bulldogs back on track after they fell behind early, but the team responded and took a commanding 47-38 lead at halftime.

Key plays in the opening stanza included a Troy Nuest steal that led to a Bryce Paumen trey, as well as a spark off the bench from Isiah Boyer and his two steals and some key rebounds.

In the second half, the Bulldogs continued their team concept and stretched the lead to 14, although Cathedral still had a run left in the tank.  Becker’s defense in the final seven minutes sealed the win.

Sawyer Brown led the scoring attack with 22 points, while Paumen chipped in 20.  Nathan Weiss contributed 16 and Landon Peterson was efficient with 13. Boyer contributed not just his eight points off the bench, but multiple steals and rebounds as well.

Nuest scored 3 points and had 11 combined deflections and steals, while Paumen was the leading rebounder with 10 for yet another double-double.

Knights

A night earlier, the Bulldogs fell to the #4 ranked team in Class AAAA, STMA, 79-50.  

The Bulldogs started the game with tremendous play, jumping to an 11-7 lead with Nathan Weiss connecting on a few three point shots. However, the Knights showed their strength, height, and control by going on a 21-0 run and claiming a 28-11 lead over the Bulldogs mid way through the first half. 

Nuest played tough defense and with a steal and transition three point shot, the Bulldogs began their own scoring run and cut into the lead, 21-32.  Nuest and Peterson each hit three’s to open the second half, but again the Knights answered with a 12-2 run and put the game out of reach.

Paumen had 12 boards and six assists to lead the Dogs in those categories, while Weiss scored 20.  

Thunder

Tuesday night, Becker hosted the Zimmerman Thunder and fell in a close conference game, 71-67.  

The Thunder entered the game with a 9-3 overall record, having one of their strongest starts in years.

Mitch Soltau and Landon Peterson led the Bulldog offense in the early going, scoring seven first half points each, while Boyer continued his strong work on the glass.

In the second half, Becker found itself down nine with 14:31 left on the clock, but the Bulldogs nailed a few long balls, one by Paumen and two by Weiss, to climb back into the game.  Nuest and Brown both had some key steals to help the Bulldogs mount the comeback bid.

“This was a hard fought, physical game,” Coach Cory Nuest said.  “We continue to have quality scoring from all players and improve each game.”

Four Bulldogs were in double figures: Paumen 18, Brown 15, Weiss 12, Peterson 10.