KARNS CITY — Friday night's rivalry game turned into a runaway.

Moniteau scored the first 13 points of the contest and never looked back on the way to an 84-56 victory over Karns City in a KSAC-South boys basketball matchup at Karns City High School.

The Warriors (6-2, 2-0) built a 25-5 cushion by the end of the first quarter and didn't allow the Gremlins (2-7, 0-2) within 15 the rest of the game.

Kyle Armagost led the way for Moniteau with 25 points, seven rebounds, eight assists and six steals.

The senior led a balanced attack from the Warriors, as each of the Moniteau starters scored at least eight points.

“We've been looking for that,” said Moniteau coach Randy Armagost. “We want five or six guys in double digits — or close to it — in every game.”

Armagost was happy with the offensive numbers, but the coach was especially encouraged by his team's defensive effort to open the game.

“Defense is what we preach, it's what we want to do,” he explained. “Put pressure on the other teams and get easy buckets.

“Offense wins games and defense wins championships,” added Armagost. “We believe in defense.”

Karns City regrouped from the sluggish start and played Moniteau evenly in the second quarter. However, the damage was already done.

The Gremlins shot just 1 of 11 from the field, 3 of 7 from the free-throw line and gave up six turnovers in the first quarter.

“I would've expected us to come out a little more emotionally charged for the game,” said Karns City coach Chris Bellis. “This is our big rival.

“Those are shots our kids are capable of making, but we just didn't make them in that situation,” Bellis added. “I felt we got some decent looks at the basket, we just couldn't convert them.”

By the time Karns City settled in, it was simply too late to mount a comeback on the talented Warriors.

“Once we realized we could play with them, especially in the second quarter, I thought we played them even,” said Bellis. “Offensively, we finally started knocking down some shots.”

Moniteau's defensive pressure played a large role in the outcome.

The Warriors tallied 16 steals — including five from Ethan Pry — while the Gremlins managed just four all night.

“I've never coached a team that I had this many guys who want to play defense,” said Armagost. “It goes all the way down to my JVs. They go after it.”

Jonathon Loos was Moniteau's second-leading scorer with 14 points and Andrew Armagost posted a solid all-around game with 11 points, six rebounds and five assists.

Pry had 10 points and six boards to go along with his five steals, while Joe Holfelder pulled down a game-high nine rebounds.

Brandyn Bowser was the only Gremlin in double figures with 12 points. Tucker Preston chipped in with nine points, five rebounds, three assists and two steals, while Tyler Kepple added eight points, six boards and three assists.

MONITEAU 84Kyle Armagost 11-21 2-2 25, Ethan Pry 3-8 4-4 10, Andrew Armagost 4-5 2-4 11, Jonathon Loos 7-14 0-0 14, Joey Deal 3-4 2-3 8, Brayden McCorry 2-4 0-0 4, Joe Holfelder 1-7 4-10 6, Drew Yeckel 1-2 0-0 2, Coltan Cumberland 0-1 0-0 0, Denny Pry 2-2 0-1 4, Dustin Geagan 0-0 0-0 0, James Bair 0-1 0-0 0.

Totals: 34-69 14-24 84.

KARNS CITY 56Tyler Kepple 3-8 0-0 8, Brandyn Bowser 3-6 4-5 12, Brady Ellenberger 1-5 1-3 3, Tucker Preston 4-11 0-0 9, Tom Stoughton 1-2 0-0 2, Kyle Barger 2-3 0-2 4, Ethan Williams 2-9 1-2 5, Dan Filges 1-3 2-2 4, Andrew Johnston 1-2 0-0 3, Logan Moroney 3-5 0-0 6, David Markle 0-1 0-0 0, David Olszak 0-1 0-0 0, Ryan Pfeifer 0-0 0-0 0, Nathan Weckerly 0-0 0-0 0.

Totals: 21-56 8-14 56.

Moniteau 25 18 23 18—84Karns City 5 18 16 17—563-point goals: Moniteau 2-10 (A. Armagost 1-1, K. Armagost 1-4, Loos 0-2, Cumberland 0-1, Bair 0-1); Karns City 6-20 (Bowser 2-3, Kepple 2-7, Johnston 1-1, Preston 1-4, Williams 0-4, Markle 0-1).

JV Score: Karns City 40, Moniteau 36

Monday: Moniteau at West Forest; Karns City at Redbank Valley