Montezuma Continuing Great Basketball Tradition
Montezuma High School
by Jamie Brockman
Southern Iowa is no stranger to good basketball, and much of the media attention goes to the bigger schools such as Oskaloosa, Pella, etc. Don’t forget there are also several smaller schools in the area that are highly successful, especially in Montezuma. This season Braves and Bravette fans are treated to two of the best teams in Class 1A every night out. The Montezuma girls are currently 15-1, with their lone loss a 65-59 setback to North Linn way back on November 24th. Since then the Bravettes are on a 15 game win streak and other than a 4 point win over Lynnville Sully a couple of weeks ago, haven’t even been challenged on the scoreboard. Meanwhile, the Boys are a perfect 16-0 with several 30 point plus victories this season and their closest margin of victory all season is 16 points. Both teams are currently ranked 3rd in Class 1A.
When teams enjoy this kind of success, there are standout individual players and Montezuma is no exception. On the boys side, Montezuma is led by standout Sophomore Trey Shearer, who averages 23 points per contest, ranking him eighth in all of Class 1A. He has 82 assists ranking him 15th in Class 1A, while shooting 51% from the floor, including 41% from three-point range and a stellar 78% from the free throw line. Senior Hunter Ray averages 17 points and seven rebounds per game. The Braves are fun to watch and are a favorite to make a run at a Class 1A State title this season. The girls are led in scoring by Junior Shateah Wetering who averages 18 points per game, ranking her 10th in Class 1A. Watering also averages five rebounds per contest, leads the team in blocks with 18, and is second with 42 steals. Senior Riley Gatton is also a significant contributor, averaging 12 points and leads the team with 62 assists and 49 steals. Sophomore Elise Boulton also contributes 9 points per game. If you’re looking for exciting, quality basketball, a trip to watch Montezuma may be your ticket this season.
