REDMOND — Just two games into Intermountain Conference play, the Caldera boys basketball team has already won as many league games as it did all of last season.

The Wolfpack got there behind dominant post play and solid communication on defense in their 56-44 win at Ridgeview Tuesday evening.

“There has been a great togetherness as we continue to play and the chemistry is starting to build,” said Caldera coach Ryan Cruz. “We are just taking it one game at a time. For us to come out and start the way we have in conference, it has been good.”

Tuesday night pitted the two IMC teams that did not reach the postseason last March against one another in the first of three matchups over the next two months. Caldera (7-5, 2-0 IMC) already exceeded last year’s four-win season, while Ridgeview (7-5, 0-2) matched its seven wins from last year.

Leading the charge for the Wolfpack was junior William Jenson, a 6-foot-8-inch transfer from Phoenix, Arizona, who has quickly become an impact player for Caldera. Jenson finished with a game-high 19 points and 10 rebounds against the Ravens.

“We have great strength with our guards,” Cruz said. “Then you put in a 6-foot-8 post that can play inside-out and his footwork in the post. He’s going to be tough to deal with moving forward.”

Injuries to both of his ankles kept Jenson off the court for the first six games of the season, as the Wolfpack started out 2-4 without him.

But since Jenson returned, the Wolfpack have settled into a groove.

They’ve won five of their last six games, with their only loss coming to Mountain View in the championship game of the Oregon Holiday Hoopfest tournament the final week of December.

“It was really disappointing to start the year with two ankle injuries, but I feel like I’m prepared and ready to go,” Jenson said. “Maybe it was a good thing because I was itching to get back in the game and do what I know I can do.”

Jenson added: “Things are really starting to click. I’ve been around the guys since summer so the chemistry is starting to click and we are starting to enjoy ourselves on the court.”

Jenson would score all 19 of his points through the first three quarters. Then it was another Caldera post that went on a scoring spree. Senior Trace Benner, who also missed time early in the season, scored 10 of his 12 points in the fourth quarter to stop the Ravens from chipping away at the lead.

“We know that we can use his strength as a rebounder and a finisher,” Cruz said of Brenner, who also had 10 rebounds. “And he did that tonight.”

Caldera’s inside presence was perhaps the difference-maker Tuesday, especially on a night when Ridgeview had its struggles converting open looks.

“Caldera is tough and they made it tough on us,” said Ridgeview coach Maarty Leunen. “But at the end of the day, we missed some good looks and good opportunities. But that’s the nature of the beast. We don’t have an inside presence like Caldera so we have to be a little more perimeter-oriented and it just came back to bite us today.”

Matters were not made easier when Ridgeview’s top scorer (and tallest player) Brady Muilenburg, a 6-6 junior, left the game with an injury after taking a hard fall in the closing seconds of the first half.

After trailing by nine at halftime, the Ravens were able to rally in the third quarter to make it a six-point game going into the final quarter. Senior guard Zack Asplund scored seven of his team-high 13 points — including a 3-pointer right before the buzzer — in the third quarter.

Caldera will host Redmond Friday at 7 p.m., hoping to keep its unbeaten IMC record intact, while Ridgeview will try to secure its first IMC win at home against Bend High.

“We’ve only played two (league) games,” Leunen said. “There are going to be a lot of opportunities to win some games. We showed we can compete against Caldera, we showed we can compete against Summit. We just have to continue to fight and do the best we can.”