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WEST BRANCH – There are quick starts and early statements and then there is what Regina did Friday in its matchup with River Valley Conference rival West Branch.

Regina jumped to a 17-0 lead after one quarter and cruised to a 57-41 win over West Branch in a RVC South Division showdown in West Branch.

Even Brauns had 15 points and Jocoa Kerschen added 13 as Regina improved to 5-0 with its third straight conference road win.

“We gave them a scouting report on Wednesday and started breaking West Branch down, these guys have really been locked in and really executed what we tried to teach for those two days,” Regina coach Jared Galpin said. “We emphasize defense every day and they keep getting better at it. So I’m pleased.”

Regina took control early and never let up.

Kerschen scored 10 of his 13 points in the 17-0 first-quarter barrage as Regina held an opponent scoreless for the first quarter for the second time in five games.

Regina has outscored teams 104-26 in the first quarter this season and has now held three straight opponents to 41 points or fewer.

“We really stress defense at practice,” Regina junior Bryce Barnett said. “We’re always working on defense. Defense is what we’re really striving on this year as a group.”

It was defense that carried Regina on Friday.

The Regals limited West Branch to seven points in the first half and 27 percent field goal shooting for the game.

West Branch dropped to 2-4 on the season and 1-4 in RVC play.

Meanwhile Regina stayed unbeaten with all five wins coming by at least 16 points.

“By no means are we perfect yet,” Galpin said. “We’re still a work in progress but they guys have the right mindset and I think they’re really starting to take pride in what we’re doing defensively.”

Jake Phillips added nine points for Regina and Barnett came off the bench to score six points and bring energy on both the offensive and defensive ends of the court.

“I’m always looking to bring a lot of energy off the bench,” Barnett said. “My guys are in there working really hard. And so when we come off the bench we’re always trying to bring that energy and keep the level of intensity up and always trying to make it a better atmosphere.

Beau Cornwell led West Branch with 15 points and Ben Thompson had eight points and eight rebounds.

No other West Branch player had more than four points as the Bears went 3-of-20 from 3-point range.

Regina            17  11  18  11  –  57

West Branch    0   7   18   16  –  41

Regina (57) – Even Brauns 7-9 1-2 15, Masen Miller 2-5 0-0 5, Jocoa Kerschen 5-8 0-0 13, Jake Phillips 4-6 0-2 9, Zach Seaman 0-0 1-2 1, Bryce Barnett 2-5 2-2 6, Luke Stein 2-5 0-0 4, Blake Berns 2-2 0-1 4, Jacob Clark 0-0 0-0 0, Jacob Sueppel 0-1 0-0 0, Brady Wallace 0-1 0-0 0, Michael Conlon 0-1 0-0 0, Steve Sehl 0-0 0-0 0, Alex Moore 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 24-43 4-9 57.

West Branch (41) – Beau Cornwell 4-17 6-7 15, Brady Lukavsky 1-3 0-0 3, Tanner Lukavsky 2-8 0-0 4, Ben Thompson 2-7 4-6 8, Ted Bridges 0-2 1-1 1, Brett Schiele 1-4 0-1 2, Cade Aspelmeier 1-1 0-0 3, Jack Dragovich 1-3 1-3 3, Jeff Bowie 1-1 0-0 2, Trey Eagle 0-1 0-2 0, Zach Thompson 0-0 0-0 0, Ben Kyllingstad 0-0 0-0 0, Matt Whaley 0-1 0-0 0. Totals 13-48 12-21 41.

3-point goals – Regina 5 (Kerschen 3, Miller, Phillips); West Branch 3 (Cornwell, B. Lukavsky, Aspelmeier. Fouls – Regina 25, West Branch 9. Technical foul – West Branch bench.