Steamboat Pilot & Today

Oak Creek — The problem is shooting and the solution is shooting, Soroco boys basketball coach Sam McLeod said Friday after his team wilted in a 71-56 home loss to Plateau Valley.

The Cowboys jumped ahead early, and while the Rams kept pace through the second half, they never found the offensive firepower to seriously cut into the lead.

“It comes down to shooting the basketball,” McLeod said. “If we shoot a decent percentage, it’s a different game. We are having to depend on getting to the basket too much. If you are able to hit from the outside, that opens the lane up. When you’re shooting, it tears down the rest of your game, as well.”

The team didn’t have to look far to find someone to model its game after. Plateau Valley’s Teddy Grundy buried Soroco with the kind of precision game the Rams desire. He rebounded well, drove the ball well and was plenty accurate when he opted to pull up for a shot. Even at the free throw line, he was nearly perfect, sinking nine of 10 as he racked up 29 points to lead all scorers.

Soroco, meanwhile, made just 52 percent of its free throws. Sophomore Ryan Jeep led the team with 13 points, seven from the line.

Junior Keenan Bradshaw did provide a highlight, scoring 11 in his Soroco debut.

The team returns to action at 4 p.m. Saturday at home against West Grand.

By the numbers

Plateau Valley boys 71, Soroco 56

Plateau Valley    19-25-12-15 — 71

Soroco 11-17-10-18 — 56

Plateau Valley — Doug Eberhand 2 0-0 4, Brett Hawkins 1 0-2 2, Jonathan Hill 0 0-1 0, Daniel Kachin 0 1-2 1, Taylor Vanderpool 1 1-2 5, Teddy Grundy 10 9-10 29, Kyler Smith 6 1-1 15, Jacob Roberts 2 0-0 4, Matt Apodaca 1 0-2 2, Fernando Enriquez 4 1-2 9. Totals 28 13-22 71.

Soroco — Matt Regan 3 1-2 9, Keenan Bradshaw 4 2-5 11, AJ Anderson 3 1-3 7, Cody McCollum 3 1-4 7, Nic Paxton 1 6-9 7, Brandyn Leu 0 0-2 0, Bjorn Carlson 0 1-2 1, Ryan Jeep 3 7-9 13. Totals 17 19-36 56.

To reach Joel Reichenberger, call 970-871-4253 or email jreichenberger@SteamboatToday.com