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About The nugget. (Sisters, Or.) 1994-current | View Entire Issue (Feb. 21, 2018)
14 Wednesday, February 21, 2018 The Nugget Newspaper, Sisters, Oregon Outlaws capture Sky-Em League basketball title By Rongi Yost Correspondent The Outlaws wrapped up league basketball play with a 48-42 win over the visiting Sutherlin Bulldogs. It was a dramatic game the entire way, with the Sky-Em League title on the line. Last year, the Outlaws tied with Cottage Grove for a first-place finish in league, and this year earned the title outright. Prior to the start of the contest, the Outlaws hon- ored their senior players: Ty Horner, Austin Lake, Isaiah Rush, James Ceciliani and Taylor Scholl. Sisters jumped out quick, and took a 14-5 lead to close out the first quarter. The Outlaws had some trouble in the second quarter, and turnovers and missed shots allowed the Bulldogs back in. At the half, Sutherlin had closed the gap to one, 20-19. The Outlaws came out strong in the third, and had a chance to head into the fourth quarter up by eight, but Sutherlin hit a long three from just inside the half-court line, and closed the lead to five (34-29). Back-and-forth scoring marked the final quarter. Zach Anderson scored five points, Horner scored four, and Noah Richards scored three down the stretch late in the game to keep the Outlaws in the lead. Sisters got great defensive stops, worked the ball for good shots, and several times beat Sutherlin’s press for scores. The Outlaws led most of the contest and had a couple of chances to turn a close game into a 10-12 point contest. But, the Bulldogs were relent- less, and kept coming back to stay within just a few points. Leading scorers for the Outlaws were Horner with 14, Anderson with 13, and Richards with 12. Sisters dropped three three-point shots, all in the second half; one each from Anderson, Richards, and Berg. Isaiah Rush and Brad Eagan both played good floor games, and directed the offense from the point guard position. Rush and Anderson did a great job defending against Sutherlin’s point guard, and Horner played a great game against their post player. Ty was also tough inside, and scored against Sutherlin’s physical defense. Richards had some big rebounds for the Outlaws in the fourth quarter, and Berg played solid the entire game, scoring all five of his points in the second half. Coach David Godfrey said, “It was an especially sweet win, because we were able to avenge a 26-point loss to them in the first round of league. The kids showed a lot of heart to come back and play so much better this time around. “It has been a year full of challenges, with all the injuries and illnesses, but the kids did a great job of over- coming all this to win the league. It’s a great accom- plishment, that’s for sure. We are all really proud of them.” Richards commented on the win. “Sutherlin’s a very disci- plined team. We really had to work for the win. It was for the title, and it came down to who wanted it more.” T h r e e d a y s e a r l i e r, Richards was on fire, and seemed to hit nothing but net as he led the Outlaws to a decisive 64-29 win at home against Elmira. Noah led all scorers with 31 points. Richards started Sisters scoring onslaught with a big three. Horner and Anderson put up four points each, and at the close of the first quar- ter, the Outlaws held an 11-10 advantage over the Falcons. Elmira scored on their first possession to start the second period, and took their first and only lead in the contest at 12-10. Richards poured it on, and posted 13 of the Outlaws 17 second-quarter points. Sisters held the Falcons to just five points in the quarter, and at the half were on top 28-15. Sisters came out firing on all cylinders in the third, and went on an 8-0 run before Elmira called a time out. The time out didn’t slow down the Outlaws’ momentum, as Richards immediately scored a bucket, and then Horner brought the crowd to their feet with a slam-dunk. The Outlaws continued to score, thanks to great relay passes that were quick and crisp. The Outlaws tacked on 13 more points in the final four minutes of the third period, held the Falcons scoreless, and took a commanding 53-17 advantage to close out the quarter. Sisters’ bench saw sig- nificant time on the court in the second half, and made some big contributions. Ryan Waddell sparked the Outlaws in the final quarter. Ryan hit two big shots from behind the arc, and closed out the game with a great move to the bas- ket for a lay-in. Godfrey commented on Waddell’s contribution. “Ryan did a good job of being aggressive on offense and defense,” said Godfrey. “He’s been working on his shot in practice, so it was nice to see him hit some shots.” Godfrey also had praise for his bench players. “It was neat to see them come in the game with the same high intensity as the starters had. And, they kept up our good play on defense.” Richards scored all 31 of his points in three quarters of play. Anderson scored 10, Horner and Waddell contrib- uted eight, and Jack Berg pitched in for four. Godfrey stated, “Noah did a great job of being aggres- sive on offense. He attacked the basket, ran the ball well, and his teammates got him the ball. He also played well on defense, and sparked us there.” Of his performance, Noah said, “I just felt steady and calm and in a groove, and felt like I couldn’t miss. My team- mates were very unselfish, and gave me great passes.” Horner commented, “We shared the ball well, and tran- sitioned well. We rebounded well on both ends of the court. It was a good team win.” Godfrey summed up the game. “All in all, it was a good team effort. We shared the ball well, were active, and we hit the open man. It’s nice to finally have all of our play- ers back, healthy, and playing together.” The Outlaws will host a game on Saturday, March 3. Their opponent won’t be decided until after the first- round games, which will be held February 24. Longing for Spring? Hair & Nails Come try our fresh fl avors. Natural & Artifi cial 541-549-6566 484 W. Washington Ave., Ste. B Open Every Day Except Wednesday, 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. 403 E. Hood Ave. | 541.549.2699 L e y r s mile! We can help. Come visit us today! Excep о al Health, Preven о & Aesthe cs Ben Crockett, d.d.s. Trevor Frideres d.m.d. p 541-549-9486 f 541-549-9110 410 E. Cascade Ave. • P.O. 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