CHERRY TWP — Moniteau coach Mike Jewart knew freshman point guard Andrew Zepeda would make a seamless transition to the varsity game well before the Warriors’ 63-56 home win over A-C Valley Tuesday night.

He first took notice of the newcomer — whose family had moved into the school district from Butler — during last year’s open gyms. The coach was eager to incorporate him.

“I saw him and I’m like, ‘Okay, this kid might be able to play,’” Jewart said. “I thought he was in ninth grade, so I was kind of stoked at that point in time. Then I found out that he was in eighth.”

Having already seen what Zepeda could do on the floor during the pre-season sessions, Jewart paid attention to the young hooper’s improvement in junior high play.

“Then he showed up this summer for open gyms and our summer league,” he said. “Just seeing what he could do there, I had no doubt he was going to fit in and he was going to be a nice little addition to the core group we have.”

That hunch has been proven right, especially as the Warriors (7-6) led wire-to-wire against their visitors from the northeast. Zepeda bucketed a season-high 13 points and flashed his ability to dish the ball while juniors David Dessicino (15 points) and Chason Delarosa-Rugg (12) also reached double-figures.

“He’s a point guard that actually passes,” Dessicino said of Zepeda. “Last year, we lacked that and he’s a really good team player. He shares the ball a lot and he can work it in himself.”

Each member of Moniteau’s starting lineup either averages or is very close to posting double-digits each outing. Interestingly enough, Moniteau entered the night coming off its best output of the season — 67 points in a 50-point win at Forest. It was the only instance all season in which not one player totaled more than nine points.

Why so willing to divvy it up?

“It just works for us,” said Zepeda. “(David) said last year, they were kind of selfish with the ball. We’re trying to just swing the ball around.”

“Coming into the year, we knew we could have one guy to score and the other four would be standing around,” Jewart said. “No one enjoys that. It’s more fun to play together.”

The rapport that the upperclassmen have built from playing together helps, too.

“Adding Andrew and (sophomore guard) Connor Ealy and (junior swingman) Landon Kelly into it, it just was natural for them to share the basketball with one another,” Jewart said. “I think they get as much excitement out of someone else scoring as themselves scoring ... It’s something we preach. We want to make sure we share the basketball and make that extra pass, but it comes naturally to them. These guys are just really good at it.”

Five different players — Zepeda, Dessicino, Delarosa-Rugg, and juniors David Martino and Aydan Jackson — knocked down the Warriors first five baskets. That collaboration opened up a 10-point lead before half of the first frame was through.

The Falcons (6-9) wouldn’t go away, but weren’t able to get within less than six until 11 ticks were left in the contest. Junior Jay Clover, who came in good for 18.7 points per contest, was limited to six points through the intial 24 minutes. He warmed up some in the final stanza and he and fellow big man Alex Preston wound up with 15 points apiece.

It was too little, too late, though, as A-C Valley dropped its fourth straight.

“They (Moniteau) did a good job defensively, crashing the paint in that zone,” Falcons co-head coach Brad Dittman said. “We just couldn’t find open spots and, when we did, we just couldn’t make the shots.”

“I think our guys rotated quickly, they communicated well,” Jewart said. “We came in playing our 32. We saw guys play behind them (Clover and Preston), and that just wasn’t working ... If you sit behind them and let them catch, they’re going to eat you alive all day. We can’t do that. So our goal was to try to take away the easy pass and then pressure their guards to make them throw that difficult pass.”

As for Zepeda’s progression, the coach is encouraged.

“Tonight, he had a big step forward,” Jewart said. “The last couple games, he hasn’t scored a ton with us and I think he got a little bit frustrated. We’ve been working on his shot a little bit in practice and he’s been working on his shot, so we’re really trying to get him some confidence.

“Once he gets going and he sees that first ball or two going in, it clicks for him.”

A-C VALLEY 56

Jay Clover 7 1-2 15, Alex Preston 6 3-5 15, Ryan Cooper 3 0-0 9, Ian Runyan 3 1-2 8, Brody Dittman 2 0-0 6, Seth Best 1 0-0 3. Totals 22 5-9 56.

MONITEAU 63

David Dessicino 6 2-2 15, Andrew Zepeda 6 4-4 13, Chason Delarosa-Rugg 4 1-2 12, David Martino 4 0-2 9, Aydan Jackson 3 1-2 7, Colton Thomas 2 0-0 5, Landon Kelly 0 2-2 2. Totals: 23 10-15 63.

A-C Valley 10 11 10 25 — 56

Moniteau 18 13 16 16 — 63

3-point goals: Moniteau 7 (Delarosa-Rugg 3, Martino, Zepeda, Dessicino); A-C Valley 7 (Cooper 3, Dittman 2, Best, Runyan)

Thursday: Moniteau at North Clarion; Keystone at A-C Valley