Getting up to speed, Kyle Porter takes control in the post as Batavia beats Geneva. ‘They just found me and hit me.’

Senior forward/center Kyle Porter is getting better and better, and so is Batavia.

A force in the secondary for the powerhouse football team, the 6-foot-6 Porter is beginning to flash an all-around game on the basketball court for the Bulldogs.

Senior point guard Nate Nazos has taken notice.

“Each night, I don’t know who’s going to have a night,” Nazos said. “This team is deep — that’s what’s great. Kyle has been playing very well, and luckily, we were able to feed him.

“We’re going to keep feeding him because we trust him with the ball down low. It’s great knowing we can trust him.”

Porter was a big key from the opening tipoff Friday night, finishing with a game-high 18 points for Batavia in a 50-30 DuKane Conference victory at archrival Geneva.

But don’t tell Porter that. He praised Nazos and senior guard Jacob Aseltine for leading the Bulldogs (7-2, 3-1). Porter said it was a season and career high for him in points.

“Ball pressure came through with the guards,” Porter said of Nazos and Aseltine up top. “Nazos came through, and it was just running down and helping them. The first few weeks it was a little tough, but I’m getting my basketball legs. I’m a basketball player now.

“All the credit goes to my teammates. Be available for the passes. They just found me and hit me, and I finished the play.”

Batavia’s Kyle Porter (3) moves in for a shot against Geneva during a DuKane Conference game in Geneva on Friday, Dec. 15, 2023. (Mark Black/The Beacon-News)

Not always, though.

Porter stole the ball in the opening 30 seconds and drove a little more than half the length of the court for a layup to start the scoring against Geneva (4-5, 0-4)

But his best was yet to come. Just 2:04 into the first quarter, Porter’s stat line read two steals, two assists and two baskets, fueling the Bulldogs’ 9-2 start to the game.

CJ Valente credited Porter for his recent performances.

“He’s been playing very well lately,” Valente said of Porter. “He did that last game, too. I think he had 15 points or something like that. If they’re in a zone, we give it to him on the baseline.”

Safe to say, Porter is a gamer. Although this is it for him.

“I’m going to be a student,” he said of his future plans.

He hasn’t decided on the school yet.

In the Bulldogs’ run to the Class 7A state semifinals of the football playoffs, Porter had 61 tackles, 45 solo, with 10 passes defended, three interceptions and two forced fumbles.

“I think he could play either one,” Valente said of the next level. “Kyle is playing really well and using his length.”

Geneva’s Gabe Jensen (2) drives around Batavia’s Brandon Redmond (11) during a DuKane Conference game in Geneva on Friday, Dec. 15, 2023. (Mark Black/The Beacon-News)

The same was true for Valente, who contributed eight points and five rebounds.

Aseltine made three 3-pointers for his nine points. Nazos added four points, four assists, four rebounds and a pair of steals. Jax Abalos scored just two points but had eight rebounds, two steals, two assists and a blocked shot.

“For the most part, we did some good things defensively,” Batavia coach Jim Nazos said. “It was a nine-point lead at halftime, but (Geneva) had a little run going.

“The first couple minutes of the third quarter we came out strong, and that helped a lot.”

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Sophomore guard Gabe Jensen had a team-high 10 points and junior forward Hudson Kirby finished with eight for Geneva after scoring the Vikings’ first six points.

Porter and Valente took turns defending the 6-5 Kirby, the focal point of his team’s attack with Jack Hatton sidelined due to injuries.

“That’s a great player,” Porter said of Kirby. “We were switching on him, trying to find the better matchup.”

Batavia’s Jacob Aseltine (2) keeps pressure on Geneva’s Elliot Kroeyr (3) during a DuKane Conference game in Geneva on Friday, Dec. 15, 2023. (Mark Black/The Beacon-News)

That’s the goal, according to Valente.

“He had a good game,” Valente said of Kirby. “But the points he got, he was working for them.”

Porter, meanwhile, finished with five rebounds and four assists.

“He’s been building up to this,” Jim Nazos said. “He’s just somebody who’s getting better and better by the week.”

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