NEW BLOOMFIELD - Sophomore forward Jak Kitchens erupted for a game-high 38 points as the New Bloomfield Wildcats demolished the Calvary Lutheran Lions 83-45 in Tuesday night's season opener.
Kitchens was responsible for New Bloomfield's first 13 points, powering the Wildcats to a 20-8 lead after one quarter. New Bloomfield then outscored Calvary Lutheran 18-11 in the second quarter to widen its advantage to 38-19 at the break.
"We felt like we had a little size advantage and pounded the ball into the post," Wildcats head coach Tim Gilmore said. "Jak made it easy on himself and didn't try to get too creative."
Senior guard Jacob Brown also registered 18 points, including five 3-pointers, as seven different players scored for New Bloomfield. The Wildcats carried a 57-37 lead into the fourth quarter and turned the game into a rout by outscoring the Lions 26-8 over the final 8 minutes.
"It was one of the most balanced efforts I've seen," Gilmore said. "We'll feed the ball to who's hot, then we work off of that."
Luke Allen led Calvary Lutheran with 11 points and Colin Bernskoetter contributed 10.
Freshman guard Bailey Crane finished with a team-high 16 points to direct four players in double figures as New Bloomfield prevailed 59-45 in the junior varsity game. Sophomore guard Nick Hammann followed with 13 points, freshman guard Jalen Martin supplied 11 and sophomore guard Kyle Emerson chipped in with 10.
The Wildcats are the top seed for next week's 77th-annual Tipton Tournament. New Bloomfield squares off against No. 8 seed Bunceton at 9 p.m. Monday.