By GEORGE MAHL – Sports Editor

EDGARD – The West St. John Rams started out slow Tuesday night against St. Martin’s. However, it did not last long as the Rams raced to an easy 80-27 victory over the Saints.

“Without a doubt, the first half was sluggish for us,” said West St. John Head Coach Antoine Edwards.

“But, the second half was different because we played well on both sides of the court.”

The first quarter saw the Saints play very well. St. Martin’s was getting easy second chance points and at times seemed to be out hustling the Rams. With St. Martin’s leading 10-8 with 1:15 in the first quarter, Rams center Neil Songy made a basket to tie the game at 10. West St. John guard Josh Lumar then stole the ball and took it the length of the court to make an easy layup. His steal made the score 12-10 West St. John. In addition, Lumar had three steals in the first half.

A 10-0 run to start the second quarter expanded the West St. John lead to 22-10 with 5:49 remaining in the second quarter. Lumar’s three-point play gave the Rams a 12 point lead.

A 12 point lead quickly became a 34-18 lead with 57 seconds remaining until halftime. WSJ guard Dana Stipe scored the final six points of the quarter for the Rams.

Defensively, the Rams played almost a perfect third quarter, allowing only one field goal. A three-pointer by Stipe gave the Rams an insurmountable 41-18 lead. After the Saint’s made their only field goal of the quarter, West St. John forward Quinn Johnson made a thunderous dunk to give the Rams a 57-20 lead.

West St. John outscored St. Martin’s 27-2 in the third quarter.

The Rams bench saw significant playing time in the fourth quarter. Reserve guard Juan Joseph scored the first eight points of the fourth quarter.

“I was very thankful that we got to play a lot of people. Hopefully, they gained some experience out there,” Edwards said.

Joseph finished the game with 11 points. The fourth quarter saw West St. John outscore St. Martin’s 19-7 in the fourth quarter.

The Rams improved their district record to 9-0 (17-8 overall). The Rams have had little difficulty with district opponents this season, which may create a problem in the post-season.

“I am concerned about that,” Edwards said. “You half to start playing from the opening tip-off. We can’t afford to get going in the second or third quarter,” he added.

West St. John will host a first-round playoff game next week.

St. Martin’s fell to 2-7 in district.