BATTLE GROUND — When Carter Monda took the pass from Tyler Ricketts off the opening tipoff and drilled a corner 3-pointer, the Evergreen Plainsmen had a good feeling about their non-league bout with Battle Ground.
“After that, I felt like the game was over,” Evergreen senior Mario Herring said. “We came in strong and hot.”
The Plainsmen, behind five first-half 3-pointers, jumped to a 21-point lead and held on for the distance to knock down Battle Ground 59-51 on Monday.
Monda paced all scorers with 13 points, hitting a pair of triples in the opening three minutes to give Evergreen an 8-2 lead.
“We just want to play fast and set the tempo,” Evergreen coach Brett Henry said. “That’s been the key all year: to establish our pace.”
The Plainsmen continued the torrid start with a Peyton Albers 3-pointer late in the opening frame for a 20-6 lead. They extended that to 33-12 on a deep Monda field goal late in the second
Herring, who matched up with Gonzaga commit and Tiger junior Kaden Perry most of the night, finished with eight points and 13 rebounds. He also had three assists and three steals, both team-highs.
When Herring was on the court — he did battle foul trouble early — he went toe-to-toe with the 6-foot-9 Tiger big man. At 6-foot-6, Herring had to use his savvy and long arms to fend off Perry best he could.
“It’s very hard; he’s very aggressive,” Herring said of his matchup Monday. “He’s very fundamental, and he’s long. Very long.”
Perry finished with 28 points, 20 rebounds and seven blocks for the Tigers, as he led a second-half comeback. Perry scored 16 of his 28 in the second half.
Battle Ground cut the deficit to 52-48 with two minutes remaining in the game when Perry got a pass from David Reed off a missed free throw and flushed home a powerful slam, his second of the night.
Battle Ground got no closer. Evergreen made 10 of its 12 second-half free throws to close the game out.
“Bottom line is we’re not going to back down,” Henry said. “They were the aggressor in the second half. … What I’m most proud of is we didn’t buckle. We were able to fight back.”
Evergreen improves to 5-0 on the season, and goes for the sweep of the 4A Greater St. Helens League on Wednesday in a home meeting with Union. The Plainsmen own double-digit wins over Heritage, Skyview and Camas.
“We’re playing together for the most part,” Henry said. “We got hit back a little tonight so now, it’s about how we move forward.”
Battle Ground (5-2) has lost two straight entering Friday’s road trip to Prairie. The Tigers play in the prestigious Les Schwab Invitational following the holiday break.
EVERGREEN 59, BATTLE GROUND 51
EVERGREEN — Camren Smith 0, Jaden Stanley 7, Izaac Romero 9, Zyell Griffin 8, Tyler Ricketts 6, Mario Herring 8, Peyton Albers 6, Joey Jack 2, Carter Monda 13. Totals 22-56 (5-23) 10-13 59.
BATTLE GROUND — Bishop Straube 0, Max Ramirez 2, Cole Billingsley 0, Nate MIllspaugh 10, Brendan Ball 7, Kaden Perry 28, David Reed 3. Totals 17-43 (2-13) 14-22 51.
Evergreen 20 13 13 13—59
B. Ground 6 10 20 15—51
