Junior varsity Panthers have a big month

Junior varsity

     Eight wins in nine games wrapped up a very successful January for the Monticello junior varsity boys basketball team.

     The Panthers (14-3) began the month with a 49-24 win at Bellevue. Gavin Cooper led Monticello in scoring with 10 points, Tyler Luensman added nine, Connor Lambert had eight, Devin Kraus scored seven, Ty Kehoe added six, Luke Lambert had three, and Brayden Cleeton, Jeff Carlson and Daltyn Kramer scored two apiece.

     At Wilton Jan. 5, the Panthers scored a 48-25 win, led by Kehoe’s 20 points. Carlson scored 12 and Luensman added 10. Kraus and Kramer had six points apiece; Cleeton and Cooper each contributed four points.

     Monticello was back on its home court Jan. 6 to play North Linn, and lost 41-30. Luke Lambert led the Panthers with eight points. Kehoe scored five, Cooper and Luensman had four apiece, while Kraus, Cleeton and Kramer had two each.

     On Jan. 12, the Panthers played at Northeast of Goose Lake, and won 35-25. Carlson led the way with 12 points, Connor Lambert had nine, Luensman had eight, Kehoe scored six and Cleeton added two.

     Back home Jan. 16, Monticello topped Camanche 47-38, as Kehoe scored 14 points and Luensman added 11. Cleeton had six points, Kraus and Carlson had four apiece, Connor Lambert and Cooper chipped in three each, and Luke Lambert had two.

     Next, the Panthers played at Mid-Prairie of Wellman Jan. 19, and won 39-36. Kehoe scored 16 points and Connor Lambert added 12 to pace the Panthers. Luensman added five, Cleeton and Carlson had two apiece, and Cooper scored one.

     A trip to North Cedar was next, on Jan. 23, and Monticello won 41-29. The Panthers boasted a balanced scoring attack that included Kehoe with nine points, Connor Lambert with eight, Luensman six, Luke Lambert five, Carlson and Kramer four apiece, Cooper three and Cleeton two.

     In a Jan. 26 home game against Durant, Monticello won 39-35 as Kehoe had 17 points. Kraus added eight points, Will Rieniets scored six, and Cleeton, Cooper, Carlson and Kramer had two apiece.

     The Panthers wrapped up January with a 22-19 home win over Cascade, as Connor Lambert scored 17 of the Monticello points. Luke Lambert had four points, and Kehoe added one.

Eighth-grade team

     The Monticello eighth-grade teams played at Cascade Jan. 25. The A team lost 45-27, but eight different Panthers scored points. They included Wyatt Coyle with six, Caleb Sauser with five, Eian Weber with four, Grant Hospodarsky and Kaden Finn with three each, Chandler Weber, Brendan Koppes and Lucas Bartachek with two apiece.

     The B team lost 10-6. Marco Perez led Monticello with three points, Hospodarsky scored two and Joseph Schrader had one.

     On Jan. 29, Monticello played host to North Cedar. The A team lost 38-29. Sauser had nine points, Finn added six, Trey Kuper and Bartacheck had five apiece, Eian Weber and Hospodarsky had two each.

     In the B game, North Cedar won 22-21. For Monticello, Schrader had eight points, Hospodarsky and Perez had four each, Calvin Scott scored three, and Koppes had two.

Seventh-grade team

     Monticello Red picked up three wins and Monticello White went 3-1 in seventh-grade boys basketball action last week.

     The Monticello teams traveled to North Cedar Jan. 29, where the Red team won 46-33 and the White team lost 27-21.

     On Feb. 1, Monticello played host to Northeast of Goose Lake. The Red team rallied to win 44-25, and the White came back from a six-point deficit to win 25-24.

     There were three games for Monticello at home against Anamosa Feb. 2. The Red team won 44-12, and the White team played two games, winning 20-13 and 27-4.

     At the halfway point of the season, the Red team stands at 5-1, while the White team is 3-3.