Junior High BB Teams Play Oakley
The junior high basketball teams played Oakley in St. Francis on Thursday, November 10th. The young Indians won one contest out of the three that were played. The B-Team defeated Oakley in a close contest 23-22. Oakley won the A-Team contest 27-30 and the C-Team contest 13-21.
In the B-Team contest, St. Francis trailed 3-6 after one quarter of play but regained the lead at halftime 12-10. The Indians held a narrow lead throughout the second half, leading 19-17 after three periods and held on to win the contest 23-22.
Coach David Morrow commented on the B-Team game, "After having trailed for most of the first quarter, the boys were able to take the lead in the second quarter and keep it throughout the rest of the game. In some respects, we played better against Oakley than we have in the previous two games. We were more fluid on offense, and the guys showed a lot of patience and control against Oakley’s half-court defense, which was different from anything else we’ve seen this year. Once again, the guards set the tone for this game by handling a little bit of pressure and playing good defense. Taylor Rogers had another good shooting night, scoring two three-pointers. Joel Hill also had another good game, scoring 6 points."
"Toward the end of the game, the guys had to play smart basketball and run some time off the clock. At the very end of the game, Oakley got a turnover and scored a basket, but time ran off the clock as the ball came out of the net. These guys are now 3-0, and will face our next opponent in Hoxie."
Scoring for St. Francis in the B-Team game were: Taylor Rogers, 9; Joel Hill, 6; Austin Patton, 6; and Jeremiah Neitzel, 2.
The A-Team game was a close one also. The Indians trailed 5-6 after one quarter of play and 10-12 at halftime. The Indians fought back to earn a 20-20 tie at the end of three periods, but could not seal the victory. The Indians were defeated in the A-Team contest 27-30.
Coach Morrow provided the following comments on the A-Team game, "This was another close contest throughout the entire four quarters that saw several lead changes later in the game. Oakley played the same half-court trapping defense against the A-team that they had played in the B-game. At times, we handled this pressure very well, but as time wore on, the Plainsmen caught on to some of our tendencies and created some costly turnovers for us. Nonetheless, the guys played pretty well in most aspects of the game. We created a lot of turnovers with our pressure, and once again, not scoring our lay-ups on these opportunities proved costly. Though we don’t keep detailed statistics for the junior high games, I would estimate that we missed no fewer than 7 or 8 lay-ups, which easily could have been the difference in the game."
"In the last few seconds, we had opportunities to pull to within one point, but we couldn’t convert on the out-of-bounds play or another opportunity we had from the half-court offense."
"Garrett Brunk and Carl Fabre had very good games and were both exciting players to watch. Both of these guys are athletic and create a lot action on both offense and defense. One great thing about this team is that we have a lot of players who come in and contribute. Oakley is still undefeated, but it’s very clear to all of us that we can beat them."
Scoring for the Indians in the A-Team game were: Garrett Brunk, 11; Carl Fabre, 11; Jakob Church, 3; and Lane Hobrock, 2.
The C-Team lost to Oakley by a score of 13-21. Oakley led throughout the contest, earning leads of 4-7 and 9-11 at the first two quarter breaks. Oakley stretched their lead in the third period to 10-17 and went on to win the contest 13-21.
Coach Morrow commented, "It’s a wonderful thing to play another team with enough players to field a C-team! We had a lot of kids play 5 or 6 quarters between B and C team competition, which gives them an extra chance to develop their skills and compete."
"J.R. Landenberger is our primary ball-handler, and he got quite a workout on Thursday. Oakley used the same pressure defense in this game as in the other two, and he had to get the offense in action under some tough circumstances at times. When he did, we found Payton Beims a couple of times in the post area for some easy baskets."
"These guys played hard throughout the entire four quarters. At times we out-rebounded the Plainsmen, and had we been able to put a few more of those back into the basket, we might have won the contest. Landenberger was 3 for 4 from the free throw line."
Scoring for St. Francis in the C-Team game were: J.R. Landenberger, 8; Payton Beims, 4; and Austin Patton, 1.
The junior high teams will play in Hoxie on Thursday, November 17th at 4:00 PM.
