Mountain View Freshman Dominates For Mesa In Home Win

A theme is starting to develop for the Mesa Thunderbirds Basketball Program. 

That theme reverberates winning. 

On Saturday evening, November 21 at Theo Heap Gym, Mesa took out another ACCAC opponent in Central Arizona, 59-52, behind a stellar performance from Stephen Rogers. 

Mesa is beginning to establish themselves as a potent offense with a tenacious defense.  The T'Birds can turn up the intensity behind their offensive star Stephen Rogers almost at will. 

"We came out a bit slow due to some fatigue as we've been on the road for the past couple weeks.  However, we battled, got some nice plays from Stephen, and Deonte gave us a lift," says Coach Ballard. 

Players on the team are learning to play off of each other's strengths to the delight of Thunderbird Nation.  Saturday night was no different. 

The team did not shoot all that well from the floor, but they were able to take advantage of CAC miscues and capitalize when it mattered most. 

The Vaqueros would jump out to a nine-point lead in the first half.

The second half would see a complete 180-degree turn.  Mesa would take a nine-point lead with 10:12 to go in the game, 44-35, on a jumper by John Balwigaire. 

Balwigaire, the team's point guard, has been slowed by an ankle injury.  He is just beginning to gain some confidence and trust his ankle.  Coach Ballard mentioned that once he does get healthy, Mesa will really begin to click offensively. 

In the time being, Mesa fans can clamor over the game of Stepen Rogers. 

No one scored in double-figures for the T'Birds except Rogers. 

In hitting nine of 15 from the floor, all six of his free throw attempts, Rogers scored a season-high 26 points for Mesa, willing his team to victory.  He would also manage two rebounds, two blocks, and a steal.  

The next closest high-scorer for Mesa was Deonte Robers with eight. 

Chubby Henderson had another strong night at the point, dishing out four assists and turning the ball over only once.  That makes 13 assists to two turnovers in the past two games.  Most coaches will take that ratio to the bank. 

No one other than Rogers shot over 50% for the T'Birds on the night.  Rogers (two of six)was the only player to hit a three-pointer as Mesa went two of 14 from beyond the arc.  Much of that was due to the quickness of the Central defense. 

As a team, Mesa handled the ball very well, committing only nine turnovers in the game.  CAC had 16.

Free throws continue to be an achilles heel for the Thunderbirds as the team hit 19 of 30 on the night (63%). 

However, none of that matters much as Mesa gets in the win column and can enjoy first place in the ACCAC (4-1, 2-0) as they break for Thanksgiving. 

Mesa travels to Chandler-Gilbert on Wednesday, December 2 at 7:30 p.m.