GILBERT — The Gilbert boys basketball team overcame a rough third quarter to get past Bondurant-Farrar, 68-60, on Jan. 9.
The Tigers saw a 13-point lead erased by the end of the third quarter. But the ended the game on a 21-12 run to pick up their first victory of 2026 and improve to 5-4 overall and 4-3 in the Raccoon River Conference.
Gilbert center Lual Kenyang (24) looks for shot against Bondurant-Farrar forward Jasper Wilson (22) during the second quarter of the Tigers’ 68-60 victory over the Bluejays in high school boys basketball on Jan. 9 at the Gilbert High School gym in Gilbert, Iowa.
“We were ready to go,” said Gilbert coach B.J. Terrones. “That first half all of the work we did the last couple of days really showed. The third quarter we really had a difficult (time) shooting along with fouls, and that became a close game. I was really happy that once that happened our players were able to adjust to the way the game was called and they were able to work together from a team defensive standpoint without fouling.”
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Bondurant-Farrar fell to 2-6, both overall and in the RRC.
Here are three things we learned from Gilbert’s win over the Blueays.
Gilbert shows grit
After opening its post-Christmas break play with back-to-back losses to top-10 Class 3A teams in Ballard and Adel-Desoto-Minburn, Gilbert was in need of a confidence boost.
The Tigers looked full of confidence in the first half after taking a 40-27 lead. But they were outscored 22-8 in the third quarter as Bondurant-Farrar went 5 of 5 from the line and Bluejay guard Drake Pfaltzgraff scored 15 of his game-high 28 points.
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But in the fourth quarter, Gilbert flipped the script. The Tigers held Pfaltzgraff scoreless over the final eight minutes, and they started to get their transition game going.
Matthew Ochalla scored eight of his 21 points in the quarter for Gilbert. Preston Stensland also came up big with eight of his 12 points in the final period.
“We knew Bondurant was going to be physical and try to throw everything at us,” Ochalla said. “We just had to be strong and play as tough as we can. It feels good to get a win — it’s been way too long.”
A team effort
Gilbert got scoring from 10 different players during the game.
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Ochalla and Stensland led the way, followed by nine points from reserve guard Charlie Reich, eight from center Lual Kenyang and five each from Trent Wesselmann and Billy Terrones. William Zoz chipped in four and Easton Van Cleave, Gabe Fierce and Eli Hague each netted two.
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“All of our starters and substitutes really meshed well together,” B.J. Terrones said. “I really want to compliment our bench for being ready to go and contribute. It was just nice to see.”
Big men show promise
Trent Wesselmann scored five key points off the bench and he was a force in the paint for the Gilbert boys basketball team during the Tigers’ 68-60 win over Bondurant-Farrar on Jan. 9 at the Gilbert High School gym in Gilbert, Iowa.
Kenyang stands 6-foot-7 and Wesselman 6-6.
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The duo showed a lot of promise against Bondurant-Farrar.
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In addition to his eight points, Kenyang blocked multiple shots and created havoc down low before foul trouble got to him in the second half. Wesselman, a Division I football prospect, gave the Tigers more strength inside, and his ability to be physical and eat up space freed up his teammates to get open looks.
“We know that if we get the ball inside we can easily get a bucket, or at least a foul and we get to the free-throw line,” Kenyang said.
Coach Terrones is excited to see what his big men can do the rest of the season.
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“They complement each other well with their styles of play,” B.J. Terrones said. “When one is doing certain things well, the other is very happy for them, but also, depending on the match-ups, they try and help each other be successful.”
Joe Randleman covers high school sports for the Ames Tribune. Contact him at jrandleman@gannett.com. Follow him on Twitter at @JoeRandleman
This article originally appeared on Ames Tribune: Gilbert boys basketball tops Bondurant-Farrar
