5 Takeaways: Bossier vs Woodlawn (Shreveport)
Saturday night, December 22nd, saw the most highly anticipated district game in 1-4A. Not only was it an important district game, it was important statewide. Saturday saw the Woodlawn Knights host the Bossier Bearkats in this contest of top four…
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Continue ReadingSaturday night, December 22nd, saw the most highly anticipated district game in 1-4A. Not only was it an important district game, it was important statewide. Saturday saw the Woodlawn Knights host the Bossier Bearkats in this contest of top four teams in class 4A. From the tip, the action was fast-paced and intense. Bossier took an early lead when Xavien Beasley made the first basket of the game and never looked back. It was and 11 point game after one and the Knights were down by 20 at the half. The Knights never got when 15 points as Bossier moved to 2-0, in district, with the 73-51 win.
From this game, here are the five biggest takeaways.
When Bossier plays defense…
Coming into the game, Bossier was the top team in 4A. Even with their status, there have been games during the season where defense was not the biggest priority. However, there have been signs of progress as they held Airline and North Central to 40 points or fewer. In this game, defense was the top priority. Kalaas Roots took the challenge of guarding all state guard Tramichael Moton while the other defenders locked in on everyone else. Drives were funneled to D’ante Bell (who had three blocks) and other help defenders. What ultimately happened was a Woodlawn team who was totally out of sync all night. By halftime, the Knights had only produced 15 points (on route to 51). So, when Bossier plays defense, the opposition is in deep trouble.
Too much emphasis on one player
Woodlawn point guard Tramichael Moton is a baller. Getting into the paint and making shots is his thing. On Saturday though, Bossier made that difficult for him. There were times when he was able to get by the initial defender and make a layup or go to the line. On more times than not, Bossier sent one or two more defenders at him. This cut off passing lanes to shooters and clogged the paint to discourage shots Moton is used to making. The Knights were reliant on Moton to play his usual free flowing style and they became stagnant. They settled for too many jumpers and standing and watching Moton with the ball. Ball movement was at a minimum with too much one on one play. The ending result was them not being in the game after the first quarter.
The “X”-factor was……
Better known as Zay, Xavien Beasley was the “x”-factor Woodlawn could not account for. He began the game with the first points but went out shortly afterwards with an ankle tweak. After fixing whatever the problem was, he went out and scored 17 more points and had 17 more rebounds. Woodlawn did not have an answer for him on offense or on the boards. Beasley might have the height of a two guard but he plays the game like a 6’6″ power forward. He can take anyone who guards him off the dribble, post up players taller than he (or smaller), and shoot the mid-range. If Bossier did not have Jacoby Decker, they could run their offense through Beasley. He is the ultimate “x”-factor and played like it on this night.
The best underclassman did not show up
One of the better players in the 2021 class is Delatrion Moton. During the summer he showed on the Adidas Gauntlet that he would be a player to be reckoned with throughout his sophomore season. On this night however, he might have had his worse outing by far. Moton checked into the game and had the task of guarding Zay Beasley. On this night he seemed to be over matched. Then, his offensive game disappeared. Moton was not a factor on either in of the floor during the game. This was disappointing for a player who coming into the game had shot the ball well from deep and in the paint during the Knights consolation final finish the week before. Delatrion is still one of the better players in his class. In their next game against Bossier, hopefully he will play like it.
Projections for both teams
Despite the loss, Woodlawn is still a team that can make a deep run into the playoffs. They have the offensive firepower to compete with any team in 4A. On most nights, they can outscore any 4A team. They have to get more production from the players who get touches within the paint like 6’4″ John Mitchell (2021), 6’6″ Michael Jones (2020), and 6’4″ Delatrion Moton (2021). If they become more balanced and less dependent on Tramichael Moton to work his magic on offense, the Knights could very well see Bossier for a third time this season in the semis or the finals.
Bossier, with the way they have been playing, should be the favorite to walk away with the 4A title. The two teams they lost to this season, 3A power Peabody and Division I championship Scotlandville, are teams that can match Bossier defensively and offensively. There are not many teams that have shown they can do that in 4A as of yet. There is still plenty season left and a team may show themselves to be that caliber. Let us not forget that Bossier is starting four seniors and a junior who are battle tested. That goes a long way into the second season. If we do not see Bossier on championship Friday or Saturday during Marsh Madness, the season will be a disappointment for them.
Although there is another district match-up between these two, this might have been the Knights best shot. We will see how the second district tilt goes. At the end, one (or both) of these teams should be standing at the end of the season.