'Splash Brothers' help Cougars top Monrovia 59-46

North Putnam senior Shane Beaman attempts a jump shot over a Monrovia defender on Friday. Beaman had 24 points in the win. (Banner Graphic/JARED JERNAGAN)

ROACHDALE -- The North Putnam boys' basketball team hosted an exceptional contest against the Monrovia Bulldogs on Friday. Although, it was a horrific start for the Cougars, they prevailed 59-46.

This was a signature win for North Putnam. It has fallen to Monrovia (1-10, 0-3 West Central) each year since the 2006-07 season when then-Cougar coach Wes Peek led his team to an even 10 win, 10 loss season.

Most nights it is senior Jordan Nauert who takes the spotlight for the Cougars (6-3, 2-0 WCC) but seniors Shane Beaman and Bennett Hazelgrove stole the show in Friday's win.

"It was great (to be a leader). We knew Monrovia was going to take away Jordan. I mean he scored 31 against North Montgomery," Beaman said. "We knew teams were going to start taking him away, so we had to step up. If we keep stepping up like this we are going to be a hard team to beat."

Both Beaman and Hazlegrove rose to the occasion, scoring 41 of North Putnam's 59 points. They also were fouled continuously and shot 20 of the team's 29 free throws.

"We challenged some of our guys the other night after Jordan scored 31," Cougar coach Lukas Haworth said, "We challenged guys to rise to the occasion, especially Shane and Ben."

As good as this sounds it was not all that easy for NPHS. It did not have a good first half. Turnovers, bad shots and easy shots for the opponents tore North Putnam apart.

The Cougars had an 11-attempted free throw advantage on the Bulldogs going into half, yet the Cougars were still down three at halftime.

"I told my team it was going to come down to heart," Haworth said, "Their record doesn't show up but they're a tough team. We (Cougars) came out of halftime and did a great job setting the tone."

MHS also had its troubles but stayed composed and broke down the Cougar defense. It also got big stops, which helped a lot.

"It came down to turnovers. For everything good we did we also gave the ball back on a mistake," Haworth said, "You can't do that against a team that is willing to scrap it out."

North Putnam came out of halftime needing some big help.

Beaman started it off stepping into a 3- point shot, which was the Cougar's first of the night, and it was followed by a Hazelgrove contested 3.

"(Being leaders) that's what we strive to do. We all know when they take one away we have to step up," Hazelgrove said

This put a spark on the Cougars and from there out it was a long shot for Monrovia.

The energy spread to the whole team and everyone was able to make an impact. Senior Beau Green made his presence known by dominating the inside and making six big free throws. He had 12 points on the night.

Even though Nauert did not put up his big scoring numbers he was still noticed. He had 11 rebounds on the night and was a brick wall and a menace on defense.

The Cougars more than doubled their first half scoring putting 40 more points on the board in the second.

NPHS started slow but it showed character and proved to the community that it could overcome deficits and hard times. The Cougars also proved anyone on their team can step up and be a leader.

"(Being leaders) That's what we strive to do. We all know when they take one away we have to step up," Hazelgrove said, "When they take one away the Splash Brothers have to step up."

The Splash Brothers is a special term used for Nauert, Beaman and Hazlegrove.

This was the first night of a back-to-back for the Cougars and they will host Fountain Central (6-4) on Saturday at 7:30 p.m.

Monrovia (46): Hale 11, Baker 8, Benge 7, L. Seber 7, Williams 7, Eisenhut 4, Barnett 2, Seals 0, D. Seber 0, Wright 0. 19-43 6-14, 46.
North Putnam (59): Beaman 24, Hazelgrove 17, Green 12, Nauert 4, Roberts 2, Flynn 0, Hall 0. 17-40 23-29, 59.

Team Stats