Boys Basketball: Strong second quarter leads No. 3 Madison Academy past No. 2 Holly Pond, 74-59 (video)

HUNTSVILLE, Alabama – Joshua Langford and Zach Bogardus combined for 44 of Madison Academy's points as the Class 3A No. 3 Mustangs coasted past No. 2 Holly Pond 74-59 on Friday.

Langford finished with a game-high 28 points and Bogardus added 16. Will Acuff connected on three 3-pointers to contribute nine points.

Madison Academy led 19-18 after a high-scoring first quarter for both teams. The Mustangs began to take command in the second quarter as they outscored 22-12. Langford had another impressive performance as he scored eight points during the Mustangs’ second-quarter spurt.

Holly Pond got within no closer than nine points in the second half.

“I was real excited to play this game because Holly Pond is a good team,” Mustangs coach Andy Blackston said. “They’re well coached and they’ve got a lot of good players coming back off of a Final Four team. Our guys were real excited to play this game. I thought our guys played real well together.”

Holly Pond lost in the state semifinals to Southside-Selma, who eventually lost to the Mustangs in the final.

The Broncos made six 3-pointers in the first half but connected on only two more after halftime. Gunter Morris led the way for the Broncos with 20 points, while Colby Adams had 19 and Austin Smith 11.

While the highly-talented Langford has drawn much attention for his explosive play, Bogardus has also brought a presence to both ends of the court with his size and energy.

“Zach kind of does it all for us,” Blackston said. “He’s a great defender. He can guard a guy on the perimeter. He can guard a guy in the post. He does all the dirty jobs that most kids don’t do. He will do anything it takes to win. And he’s really stepped up his scoring.”

Bogardus has been pleased with the improved team chemistry and realizes that improvements can still be made as the Mustangs head toward to postseason.

“We definitely can always get better,” Bogardus said. “Last year we were close as a team. So I think that’s what we’ve got to get better at.”