By Kent Coultas
Jaydon Howard and Zack Evans combined to score 29 points as West Central beat Griggsville-Perry 62-38 Jan. 8 in the first round of the Winchester Invitational Tournament.
The Cougars out rebounded Griggsville-Perry 42-17 and had 18 offensive rebounds.
West Central led 3-2 before scoring 10 straight points.
Howard made the first of two free throws to start the streak. Lathan Barnett, Howard and Jackson Ford each scored, and Evans had a steal and a three-point play to give the Cougars a 13-2 with 2:32 remaining in the first quarter. West Central had four offensive rebounds during the 10-0 run.
The Cougars led 16-5 after one quarter and led 32-9 in the second quarter after Ford scored after grabbing an offensive rebound. They led 36-19 at halftime.
Griggsville-Perry never got closer than 16 points, 36-20, in the second half.
West Central led 51-31 after three quarters and increased the lead to 59-31 in the fourth quarter after Barnett scored after grabbing an offensive rebound. Jack Fry ended the scoring with a three-point basket with three seconds remaining in the game.
Howard scored 15 points and had nine rebounds to lead the winners. Evans scored 14 points and had six rebounds.
Tysyn Mast scored nine points and had five steals and three assists. Tyson Brown scored eight points and had three assists. Barnett scored five points and six rebounds.
Ford scored four points and had six rebounds. Mason Berry scored four points, and Fry scored three. Payton Hartley had five rebounds.
