RHS wins big at West Monroe tourney; winning streak extended to six games

Ruston is starting to put the pieces together on the basketball court and taking it out on quality competition — turning top-level matchups into blowout wins at the Sidney Smith Tournament at West Monroe High School.

Ruston (9-7) toppled Division I Non-select No. 8 Neville 71-54 on Friday before dismantling Division II Non-select No. 7 Franklin Parish 57-17 on Saturday. The Bearcats are now winners of six straight games as the return of football players has sparked a complete 180 in terms of play.

“We’re coming together as a team,” Ruston head coach Ryan Bond said after Saturday’s win. “It’s tough when you have eight games without these football guys and now we’re coming together. They were teammates on the football field and now they’re teammates here. I just think we’re coming together and we’re figuring each other out — our strengths, our weaknesses.”

The Bearcats began their solid run at the tournament with a comeback effort against Neville, overcoming a 13-11 deficit in the first quarter to then take a 32-26 halftime lead. A big reason why was the standout play of 6- 7 freshman Ahmad Hudson, who scored a career-high 21 points to go with a career-high 21 rebounds and 3 blocks in the win. Aidan Anding provided 14 points, while Zhy Scott added 13 points, 10 rebounds, and 4 assists.

If a 17-point win over one of their top rivals wasn’t enough to make it a successful weekend, Ruston left no doubt in its final matchup of the weekend against Franklin Parish.

But quickly, it became a Ruston bloodbath — swarming Franklin Parish with intense ball pressure and multiple bodies at the rim to secure rebounds. By the end of the first half, Ruston led 40-7, exploding after an already big 18-5 first quarter. Franklin Parish nearly went scoreless in the second period but finally put down a layup with under 1:30 left in the half.

By the time the teams came out of the locker room, Ruston only needed a few more baskets to get the clock running and sub in reserve players.

Once again, Hudson and Anding led the way with 15 points each, with Hudson adding 11 rebounds for good measure.

“I think he’s getting more comfortable with the older group,” Bond said of Hudson’s play. “He’s a newbie, but he’s getting more comfortable, and the guys are gaining trust in him.”

Zheric Hill scored 8 points with two threepointers in the game as well.

Ruston’s intensity on the defensive end proved to be the difference, finishing with 16 steals and scoring 17 points off Franklin Parish’s 22 turnovers. When the Patriots did manage to hang onto the ball, they shot 16.7% from the field for the game.

“I just knew we had to come out and control the defensive side of the ball. We adjusted some things with how we were playing defensively and a little more aggressive, little more trapping. It worked out well,” Bond said. “ It looked more complete. It looked more like last year’s team at the end of the year. It goes back to time in the gym. The guys are really locked in. It’s by far the best defensive effort we’ve had here in five years that I’ve been at Ruston High.

“Couldn’t be prouder of the guys. It helps when you have you really good guards that can put pressure on the ball and you’ve got a couple bigs in the back that are going to help you and erase anything at the rim,” Bond added.

Ruston will look to extend its win streak in a road matchup at Northwood-Shreveport on Friday at 7:30 p.m.