INDIANAPOLIS — Devin Bolden was jarred awake earlier this week by a text from a college recruiter. It was a congratulatory text on Bolden’s being named the City Player of the Year. The junior Cardinal Ritter high school basketball star said he was surprised but happy.
The celebration continued Friday night as Bolden poured in 33 points to lead the Raiders (13-12) to a 66-51 victory over Park Tudor in the Class 2A Sectional 42 semifinal game in his home gym. The hosts will face University High School, last year’s state 2A runner-up, for the sectional title on Saturday night. The Trailblazers earned their place in the final by beating Covenant Christian 66-55 in a hard-fought opener.
Ritter coach Derrick Williams said winning the award validated his 6-8 power forward, especially since the honor came from a vote of coaches in the City Alliance.
“That solidified for him, ‘Oh I am that good,’” Williams said. “The coaches think he’s good. That was key for him.”
“It’s boosted my confidence a lot,” Bolden agreed, “and that confidence has helped me become a smarter player.”
Bolden scored in a variety of ways Friday night – offensive rebound put-backs, drives to the baskets, dunks courtesy of highlight passes from guard Cheick Wade, and even threw in a 3-point field goal for good measure.
“We’ve really emphasized on me getting out there and not being only a post player. It’s helped me become more versatile,” Bolden said.
Wade ended up with 15 points including three from beyond the arc. For the game, Ritter hit seven 3-pointers to only one for Park Tudor (14-9). The Panthers were led in scoring by Keylan Smith with 15 points and Carlos Lopez, who finished with 13.
Bolden’s first-quarter bucket on a spin move in the paint gave the Raiders an early 10-8 and they never looked back. They led 34-20 at the break. Park Tudor cut the deficit to 49-42 with 6:15 to go in the fourth quarter but 8 consecutive points coming on two Wade lay-ups and two Bolden dunks off perfect lobs from Wade, put the game on ice for the Raiders.
University 66, Covenant Christian 55
In the opener, the Trailblazers (17-8) used a balanced attack to outlast the Warriors (12-11) and the herculean play of Covenant Christian’s Isaac Crane who was relentless in scoring 31 points. University was led by Faisal Mohamud and Josh McGee who each finished with 16 points. Noah Cortez had 15 and Blake Gray added 13 more.
“We’re a balanced team,” University coach Justin Blanding said after the win. “Everyone shares the ball. Everyone gets an opportunity. That’s how we play.”
Blanding called Crane the best player in the sectional. He dominated the third quarter, scoring 14 of the Warriors’ 17 points. Blanding switched his fourth quarter defense by sending a double-team at Crane when he touched the ball and even instructing a third defender to help if possible. The strategy didn’t shut Crane completely down, but it did seem to slow his momentum a little and enable the Trailblazers to stretch a six-point lead.
Covenant Christian coach Scott Flatt said Crane is usually pretty good at splitting double-teams and lamented his team’s missed opportunities to get him more touches in the fourth quarter. He had nothing but admiration for his senior star.
“He’s been phenomenal. He’s been a walking double double for us,” Flatt said.
University and Ritter met in early December with the host Trailblazers winning 77-62. The rematch at Ritter on Saturday night will be for a sectional title.
This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: More confident, smarter Devin Bolden leads Ritter to sectional title game
Reporting by Les Morris, Special to IndyStar / Indianapolis Star
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
