Senior guard Nathan Scearce has always been able to score for Bartlett.
Over the past five games, however, Scearce has taken that ability to a whole new level.
During the four-game Hinkle Holiday Classic at Jacobs and Friday night’s Upstate Eight Conference game at Larkin, Scearce has averaged 29.2 points.
“My confidence going into the next game is high,” Scearce said. “I believe I can score 30 and help my team out every game.”
Scearce scored Bartlett’s first 11 points Friday in a 64-50 victory and continued to pour it on from there, finishing with 33. He shot 11 of 14 from the field and 8 of 10 from the free-throw line.
Brendan Campbell and Joey Cwik each added nine points for the Hawks (8-9, 5-2). Larkin (3-13, 2-5) was paced by 15 points from Josh Hibbett. Cobaia Burke added 10.
Scearce started off the tournament at Jacobs with performances of 21 and 19 points. He then posted a program-record 45 points in an 89-81 overtime win over Marian Central Catholic. That also tied the single-game record for points in the tournament history.
He followed that up with 28 points in the consolation championship game against Prairie Ridge, earning all-tournament honors. Thanks to this recent hot stretch, in which the Hawks have gone 4-1, Scearce is 49 points away from 1,000 in his career.
“That would mean a lot because I came off the bench as a freshman,” Scearce said. “And my sophomore year, I broke my finger, so I never really even had a chance.
“It feels good. I feel like I’m a good 3-point shooter, but I’m better around the hoop with my size (6-foot-4) and that gets me better looks.”
Bartlett coach Jim Wolfsmith said two major factors have been the driving force behind Scearce’s hot streak. He’s getting to the free-throw line at an increased rate and he’s been efficient with his shooting.
“He’s always had that ability to score,” Wolfsmith said. “What he’s done in the last five games, he’s making good decisions, taking good shots.
“We were talking after the game about how well we’ve been playing as a team while Nathan is still doing the scoring. It’s neat to see the team play together, which makes him even more dangerous.”
Scearce was a matchup problem Friday for Larkin. The Royals don’t have a player of Scearce’s size to try to neutralize him, so coach Deryn Carter had to try to get creative to slow him down.
“He does a great job,” Carter said of Scearce. “He takes advantage of what’s in front of him. They’re a good team. We battled, but we couldn’t get it done.
“There’s only so much you can really do. It starts with having the right personnel to combat him. Hat’s off to Bartlett for giving him the ability to control the game. We just never could recover.”
Scearce wasted little time getting going Friday, and he did it in a variety of ways. To start the game, he hit a runner in the lane, a layup, a jumper from the wing and another layup. He ended his 11-point run with a three.
“After I scored the 11 points, I felt like any time I could score, so that helped,” Scearce said. “In this game they full court pressed me, so after half court, it was one-on-one. I got good looks because the game was so spread out.”
Wolfsmith is impressed with Scearce’s efficiency.
“They pressured him with a smaller guy early, so he just took it to the rack,” Wolfsmith said. “When they did give him a chance to shoot, he took it. Everything was in the flow of the offense.
“It’s not easy to do that against Larkin.”
Paul Johnson is a freelance reporter for The Beacon-News.
