Five Takeaways: A look at Rock Bridge
Mid-Missouri power Columbia Rock Bridge made the trip east to take on a strong Hazelwood Central team on Friday night. The trip proved to be very beneficial for the Bruins as they came away with a 68-57 victory to improve their record to 19-1 on the season.
Here are five takeaways after watching Rock Bridge in action:
1) The Bruins are ready to compete for a state championship
The Bruins advanced to the Class 5 state quarterfinals last season with a very young team. Led by its talented crew of sophomores, Rock Bridge pushed powerful Kickapoo to the limit before falling 76-68. A year older and more experienced, the Bruins put up some impressive wins this season with Hazelwood Central and the championship of the North Kansas City Tournament against some of the best teams in Kansas City.
2) The Big Three
Rock Bridge has a stellar 2019 trio of 6’6″ Isaiah Mosley, 6’4″ Jamonta Black and 6’2″ Dajuan Harris. The talented trio combined to score 66 of the Bruins 68 points on Friday night. Mosley scored a game-high 35 points in a dominating performance. Black scored all 19 of his points in the second half while Harris had 12 points and 12 assists. Mosley is a long wing who can score from anywhere on the court. Black is a smooth shooting guard with good skills and a lot of sway while Harris is a athletic point guard who makes everybody better.
3) Very disciplined on offense
Even with the athleticism and overall skill set of the Bruins, they run a very structured and disciplined offense. They exhibit excellent ball movement on the pass, plus the guards are tough to handle off the dribble. In the first half, the executed the backdoor play to perfection as they got several buckets against the Hawks’ aggressive man-to-man defense.
4) Solid complimentary players who know their role
Supporting the Big 3 at Rock Bridge are 6’0″ 2019 G Noah Patrick, 6’5″ 2018 Drew Boswell and 5’10” 2019 G JaVell Sanders, who comes off the bench. Patrick has the ability to knock down shots and space the floor while Boswell is a rebounder who screens well.
5) Hall of Fame coach on the sidelines
Head coach Jim Scanlon has been doing it for a long time on the sidelines at Rock Bridge with more than 700 victories to his credit during his storied career in Mid-Missouri. He’s taken teams to the Final Four in 1997, 2009 and 2011. The Bruins are still seeking that state championship, but the talented Class of 2019 has the goods to make a run at that elusive title this year and next.