It took a quarter, but the defending Class A state champs were eventually able to impose their will on the Bonny Eagle boys basketball team.

Cheverus (2-0) used its signature matchup zone defense to limit the Scots to just nine points during the middle two quarters combined and got out in transition on offense to pull away from Bonny Eagle, winning 56-38 on Tuesday night in an SMAA contest in Standish.

The Scots kept it close in the first quarter, jumping out to a 4-0 lead in the first minute on a pair of baskets from Brett Benner, who finished with a team-high 13 points. Lincoln Sanborn made two 3s in the opening quarter for all six of his points. Cheverus began to pull away with 20 seconds left in the first as Daniel Foster knocked down a 3 to make it 18-13 entering the second quarter.

Mick DiStasio scored 10 of his game-high 23 points in the second quarter and spearheaded a defensive effort that forced numerous Bonny Eagle turnovers, leading to easy transition baskets for the Stags. The Scots were outscored 15-3 in the second quarter, with their lone points coming on a Benner 3 with just over a minute to go before the half.

“Cheverus is a very athletic, tall team. They take you out of what you’re trying to do,” said Bonny Eagle coach Rick Simonds. “They forced us out on the perimeter. We weren’t driving well enough. We weren’t making each other better. And they had a lot to do with that. They’re the defending state champions. That’s a good team.”

The Scots were limited to six points in the third quarter – on 3s by Nate Doehler and Benner some five minutes apart -and trailed 47-22 going into the fourth. Bonny Eagle outscored the Stags 16-9 in the fourth as four players came off the bench to score.

“Our intensity was good and we played hard right to the end,” Simonds said. “Their coach said to me, ‘your kids play good defense and they play hard.'”

Turnovers prevented the Scots from keeping it close, however, as the Stags always seemed to have a hand in the passing lane when Bonny Eagle tried to run its half-court offense.

“I think it will be a consideration and a concern all year,” Simonds said. “At one point we had more turnovers than we had points. It’s tough. You have to shot fake. You have to ball fake. You have to make crisp passes. We struggled with the ball. We had several people with several turnovers. It’s not one player. It’s something we are generally concerned with.”

The Scots don’t have a true point guard – someone who can get to the hoop and draw in the defense. That allowed the Stags to play aggressive defense on the perimeter.

“We don’t have the player that can put the ball on the floor, go through the defense, take it to the basket and make everyone around him better,” Simonds said. “We just don’t have that player. Therefore, I think there will be several nights when we’ll struggle to score. We can shoot the ball well at times, but in order to beat these good teams, we have to do that.”

The Scots also lack height, with Sanborn being their only player above 6’2″. Four of Cheverus’ five starters are 6’3″ or taller.

“Our tallest player is six-two and a half,” Simonds said. “We’re always going to be a height disadvantage. It’s tough because you don’t get easy baskets. You don’t get that easy put-back.”

Cheverus, on the other hand, appears to be a complete team.

“They have a little bit of everything,” Simonds said. “They can run. They can shoot. They can defend. They pass extremely well. I thought passing was their greatest skill. They have good size. It’s a good ball club.”