Rustin big man Nelson scored 35 in win over Octorara

WESTTOWN >> Two things were firmly established Thursday night at West Chester Rustin when Octorara came calling in a key Ches-Mont League American Division matchup.

One was that the Golden Knights are going to be a handful for the rest of the division. The other definite was that sophomore big man Jake Nelson is becoming one of the most dominant center in District 1.

Nelson was fantastic for Rustin (3-0 Ches-Mont, 3-2 overall) as he dominated the Braves (1-1, 3-3) on his way to a game-high 35 points, 17 rebounds and three blocked shots as he led the Golden Knights to a convincing 83-60 victory.

“We are small inside and Nelson is a real nice player,” Octorara coach Gene Lambert said. “He can do it all. He can shoot, penetrate to the basket, rebound and he plays real hard. Rustin is a good team and they got us tonight.”

The Golden Knights outscored the Braves 45-29 in the middle periods and broke the game open with a 8-0 run in the second period.

The run started when Bryce Barrouk drained a three-ball for the knights. then, an Octorara turnover led to a Myles Thomas jumper. The Braves came down the floor and threw up a three-ball that clanked off the rim. Nelson rebounded the ball and his outlet found Brandon Frazier inside for a layup. The Braves turned the ball over again and after a Rustin miss, Tajir Asparagus put in a follow and the Golden Knights had a 26-15 lead. Rustin would go on to lead at the intermission 34-25 and you could feel the tide swinging the Golden Knights’ way.

“Jake is a real hard working kid,” Rustin coach Keith Cochran said. “He is getting better and better and he wants to get better. He was very active tonight. We played well at times and ugly at times. This was a learning experience for us.”

The Golden Knights blew the game wide open in the third period, outscoring Octorara 24-15 to take a 58-40 lead after three periods. Neslon scored 12 points in the quarter. He drained two long three-pointers, put in a follow, drove to the basket for another hoop and hit a medium range jumper for his points. But, Nelson got plenty of help from the other Golden Knights. Asparagus tallied 11 points to go along with six assists and Barrouk added 12 points including two three-balls.

The only blemish to the Knights’ night was the 21 turnovers they committed. Octorara forced Rustin into eight first quarter mistakes.

“This is something we talked about and we have to clean those things up,” Cochran said. “We were ugly at times and if we don’t clean up the turnovers we will not be successful.

Rustin cleared its bench midway through the fourth quarter but still outscored the Braves 25-20 in the final period. The Knights shot 28 for 46 on the night, compared to the Braves’ 19 for 54 shooting nightmare. Nelson owned the boards at both ends of the floor, and the sophomore talked about his performance and Rustin’s tough nonleague schedule coming up, with the likes of Chester, Plymouth-Whitemarsh and Malvern Prep on the horizon.

“I think playing these quality teams gets us prepared for our goals of making a run in districts and states,” Nelson said. “And tonight I got the ball down low in good position. My favorite part of the game is driving to the basket and that is when I am most successful.”

Cochran was happy with his defense as the Golden Knights limited second chance rebounds for the Braves and contested every shot. Dom London tallied 18 points to lead the Braves and Joe Starkey came off the bench to add 10 points.

“We know we play defense at Rustin,” Cochran said. “We have the desire and the personal to play defense and it is a big part of our game and I was happy with the effort tonight.”

Notes >> West Chester Rustin was a perfect 21 of 21 from the foul line.

West Chester Rustin 83, Octorara 60
OCTORARA: London 5 6-6 18, Goibbs 3 0-3 7, Jefferson 1 0-0 2, Lantz 0 2-2 2, Rudisill 3 0-0 6, Lambert 2 0-0 5, Mayo 3 2-3 8, Starkey 2 5-5 10, Grove 1 0-0 2. Totals 19 15-19 60.
W.C. RUSTIN: Nelson 14 5-5 35, McMahon 2 0-0 5, Eile 1 0-0 2, Barrouk 23 4-4 12, Thomas 3 2-2 8, Durant 2 2-2 6, Frazier 1 2-2 4, Asparagus 3 4-4 11, Oswald 0 2-2 2. Totals 28 21-21-83.
Octorara    11 1 4 15 20 – 60
W.C. Rustin    13 21 24 25 – 83
3-point goals: Strakey, Lambert, London 2, Gibbs, Asparagus, Barrouk 2, mcMahon, Nelson 2.