DOUGLAS – The Torrington Trailblazers started off the weekend rough against second-ranked Cody at the Douglas Classic, before rallying to pick up wins over Lander and Lovell.
Cody 73, Torrington 40
The Broncs came out hot against the Blazers, going up 18-9 after the first quarter. Torrington added 11 points to their total in the second quarter, but Cody went in to the break with a 37-20 advantage. No. 2 Cody continued its solid play in the third, outscoring Torrington 20-8 in the third, before closing the door in the fourth quarter in a 73-40 win.
“THS ran into a very good Cody team on Friday and came out a bit flat,” coach Neil Baker said. “Their talent and our struggles led to a big win for them. We had trouble with their size and their pressure. We were unable to get the kind of shots we normally get and as a result, we shot a poor percentage.”
Bryan Lemmon led the Blazers in scoring, with 11 points, and rebounds, with eight. Jared Lemmon tallied nine points and five rebounds in the loss. Jordan Malm kicked in six points against Cody, while Devin Flores added five and Nathan Stitt chipped in four. Lathen Canaday and Sam Firminhac rounded out the scoring with three and two points, respectively.
Torrington 64, Lander 44
Torrington hit the ground running to open Saturday’s action, running out to a 13-0 lead over Lander in the first two minutes of action. By the end of the first frame, the Blazers held a 20-8 lead. In the second, the Tigers put up one more point than Torrington, but the Blazers still led 33-22 at the break. Torrington racked up 13 points in the third quarter, followed by 19 in the fourth, while allowing nine and 13 points in the final two frames.
“We really got out and ran the floor well and found the open guy,” Baker said. “When we share the ball, we look pretty good. When the ball doesn’t move well, we don’t. It was a good recovery after a tough one the night before.”
Bryan Lemmon again paced the team in the scoring department, pouring in 23 points. Stitt was second in scoring and the second Blazer in double-figures with 11 points. The duo also had six boards apiece.
Malm and Jared Lemmon tallied nine points each, while Bo Moorehouse kicked in six. Firminhac, Flores and Ryan Johnson recorded two points apiece. Malm led the way on the boards with seven, while Johnson and Jared Lemmon had four rebounds apiece.
Torrington 72, Lovell 48
The second quarter proved to be the key to the Blazers picking up their second win of the day and third on the season. Both teams put up 19 points in the first frame, before the Blazers ratcheted down and outscored Lovell 25-5 in the second quarter.
“After a poor defensive effort in the first quarter, in which we gave up 19 points, we held them to five in the second, while scoring 25 of our own, and really broke the game open,” Baker said.
Both teams tied in scoring outputs against, with Torrington and Lovell both scoring 13 points in the third quarter. In the fourth, the Blazers outscored the Bulldogs 15-11 to seal the win.
Bryan Lemmon racked up 18 points to lead Torrington to the victory, while Malm, who had seven boards in the game, chipped in 15. Flores came off the bench and added another 13, rounding out the Blazers in double-figures.
Jared Lemmon and Stitt had eight points apiece. Lemmon led Torrington with eight rebounds, while Stitt contributed another five. Firminhac, with four points, and Johnson, Moorehouse and Canaday, who all had two points, rounded out the scoring in the win.
At the end of the weekend, Torrington has a 3-1 record on the season. The Blazers host Riverton on Thursday at 7 p.m. They also head to Sidney, Neb. for a tournament on Dec. 28-30.
