Baylor boys cruise at Signal Mountain, now 5-0

Baylor's Christian Moore dribbles around Signal Mountain's Oden Stiles during Wednesday night's game at Signal Mountain. Baylor started strong and cruised to a 57-36 win.
Baylor's Christian Moore dribbles around Signal Mountain's Oden Stiles during Wednesday night's game at Signal Mountain. Baylor started strong and cruised to a 57-36 win.

The Baylor boys' basketball team turned in a complete performance Wednesday night at Signal Mountain to continue its unblemished start to the season.

The Red Raiders downed the Eagles 57-36 and moved to 5-0 while scoring in double digits in each quarter and holding their fourth consecutive opponent to 40 or fewer points.

"The best thing our team does is share the basketball, and we didn't have to teach them that," Baylor coach Mark Price said. "It's just who they are as kids. They're also committed to our defense. Again, that's a character thing. They do anything we ask of them, and it's a fun group to coach."

The Red Raiders took an early lead behind Beyuan Hendricks and Nick Kurtz. The dynamic pair scored all 14 of the team's points in the opening quarter, which included an 8-0 run to start.

Hendricks finished with a game-high 19 points, while Kurtz poured in 14 more - 10 of which came in the first half. Baylor closed the first quarter with four straight points to lead 14-8, then finished with six straight points to lead 30-14 at halftime.

Strategic rest helped keep the scoring stars fresh.

"The idea is to try and get Beyuan and Nick out at the end of each quarter to give them a blow going into the next one," Price said. "Our guys off the bench did a great job giving us energy when they came in."

Baylor also showed up on defense, holding Signal Mountain to eight points in the first quarter and just six in the second.

"It's not just about limiting points but how efficient you are, too, limiting points per possession," Price said. "Our defense is good at both. They're disciplined and also efficient."

The Eagles crested the double-digit mark in the third quarter, but they were still outscored 16-11 as the Red Raiders went into the final period with a 21-point advantage.

"We can't score the basketball," Signal Mountain coach Steve Redman said after his team dropped to 2-7. "We need to find some offense from somebody, and we need to play crisper. We have to set screens and crash glass. We just aren't doing that.

"There's a lot of room for improvement, and we know what we're bad at."

Baylor started the fourth quarter with another 8-0 spurt to make it 54-25, which was the largest lead of the night. Signal Mountain fought back with six straight points and 11 of the last 14 scored in the game.

The Eagles were led by Owen Honroth's 12 points.

Contact Idris Garcia at sports@timesfreepress.com.

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