BAKER CITY HERALD • SATURDAY, MARCH 12, 2022 A5
SPORTS
BAKER BOYS BASKETBALL AT CLASS 4A STATE TOURNAMENT
Baker can’t hold early lead, falls to top-seed Junction City
BY JAYSON JACOBY
jjacoby@bakercityherald.com
The Baker boys first state
basketball tournament game in
15 years started about as well as
the Bulldogs could have hoped
for.
But their momentum didn’t
last.
Junction City, the tourna-
ment’s top seed, recovered
from a sluggish start and used
a 16-0 run spanning parts of
the first and second quarters to
propel its 58-47 win in a quar-
terfinal game Thursday after-
noon, March 10, at North Bend
High School.
Baker led 13-4 on Isaiah
Jones’ 3-pointer, prompting
Junction City coach Craig
Rothenberger to call time-
out with 3:29 left in the first
quarter.
The Bulldogs didn’t score
again until well into the second
period, by which time the Ti-
gers had turned their 9-point
deficit into a 7-point lead at
20-13.
But giving up 16 straight
points wasn’t Baker’s only
problem.
Just after the first-quarter
timeout, starting guard Jaron
Long injured his right knee
while playing defense. He
didn’t return.
Baker coach Jebron Jones
said Long’s injury was crucial.
“I think it affected the play-
ers tremendously, and in a neg-
ative way,” Jones said. “He does
a lot for our team on offense
and defense. It took a toll emo-
tionally on the kids.”
Jones said that although
Long’s injury was to the same
knee he injured at La Grande
on Jan. 28, forcing him to miss
the next two games, the injury
against Junction City was a dif-
ferent type. Jones didn’t know
Long’s prognosis as of Thurs-
day evening.
The Bulldogs, even without
Long, who scored 20 points
in Baker’s playoff win at Glad-
stone on March 4, never let the
game get away from them on
Thursday.
Hudson Spike ended Junc-
tion City’s 14-0 run with a pair
of free throws, and he followed
with a 3-pointer to cut the Ti-
gers’ lead to 20-18.
But every time Baker
seemed poised to reverse the
momentum, Junction City
had an answer.
And most often the response
came from the Tigers’ 6-foot-2
junior wing, Kaleb Burnett.
Burnett had one of the best
games in tournament history,
making every one of his shots
— 13 field goals and four free
Philomath rallies to
eliminate Baker
Lisa Britton/Baker City Herald
Baker’s Jaxon Logsdon battles for a loose ball against Sisters
on Saturday, Feb. 26, 2022, in the Baker gym. Logsdon had 10
points in Baker’s 58-47 loss to Junction City in the Class 4A state
tournament on Thursday, March 10, 2022.
BAKER (47)
Lisa Britton/Baker City Herald
Baker’s Isaiah Jones goes to the basket against La Grande’s Jace Schow
in the GOL title game on Saturday, Feb. 19, 2022, in the Baker gym.
Jones had 11 points to lead the Bulldogs in a 58-47 loss to Junction
City at the Class 4A state tournament on Thursday, March 10, 2022.
throws — for a game-high 30
points.
Burnett scored the last six
points of the half for Junction
City and the Tigers led 29-23 at
the break.
Jones said Burnett was a dif-
ficult player to deal with.
“He was crafty around the
rim,” Jones said. “He played a
great game for sure.”
Jones said Baker defenders
also contributed to Burnett’s
big game, especially when he
got the ball at the top of the key
and had the option of either
taking a quick jumper or driv-
ing the lane.
“We did not do a good job
defending the dribble,” Jones
said.
Although Junction City
never trailed in the second half,
neither could the Tigers take
complete control.
Isaiah Jones drove the lane
for the first basket of the third
quarter to get Baker to within
29-25, and, after yet another
basket from Burnett, Jaxon
Logsdon scored inside to cut
the lead back to four, at 31-27.
But Baker’s pressure defense,
which has flustered so many
opponents this season, was less
effective against Junction City
and couldn’t create the series of
turnovers and fastbreak baskets
that the Bulldogs have thrived
on in most of their 19 victories
this season.
The Tigers ran an effective
press break and used crisp,
accurate passes to thwart the
Bulldogs’ fast hands. And
when Baker double-teamed a
Tiger, Burnett always seemed
to be open for an easy basket.
“They do a wonderful job
of protecting a lead,” Jeb-
ron Jones said of the Tigers.
“They have a lot of players
who make great decisions
with the ball. They don’t
make many mistakes.”
Baker scored 15 points over
turnovers (as did Junction
City), but six of those were
in the first quarter while the
Bulldogs were rolling to the
early lead.
Junction City took its larg-
est lead at 35-27 on Court
Knabe’s 15-footer with 5:08
left in the third quarter.
But Baker’s Grant Gam-
bleton, who played extended
minutes in Long’s absence,
swished a 3-pointer from the
left wing to get the Bulldogs
back to within 35-30.
Burnett then scored 8
straight points for the Tigers
as they pushed the advantage
to 41-31.
Baker didn’t wilt.
Paul Hobson made a
3-pointer and a free throw,
sandwiched around Burnett’s
two free throws, and then
Isaiah Jones hit a tough turn-
around jumper from 10 feet
MAJOR LEAGUE BASEBALL LABOR DISPUTE ENDS
MLB players reach deal,
salvage 162-game season
BY RONALD BLUM
AP Baseball Writer
NEW YORK — Major
League Baseball’s players and
owners ended their most bitter
money fight in a quarter-cen-
tury Thursday, March 10, when
the players’ association ac-
cepted management’s offer to
salvage a 162-game season that
will start April 7.
The work stoppage ended
at 7 p.m. sharp, closing an ac-
rimonious 99-day lockout
that delayed spring training
and threatened to cancel reg-
ular-season games for the first
time since 1995.
Training camps in Florida
and Arizona opened Friday,
March 11, with players man-
dated to report by Sunday,
March 13. Opening day was
pushed back just over a week
from its March 31 date, but all
that might be forgotten when
the Yankees’ Aaron Judge digs
in against the rival Red Sox, or
Shohei Ohtani eschews the new
universal designated hitter and
plays both ways for the Angels.
“I do want to start by apol-
ogizing to our fans,” Commis-
sioner Rob Manfred said, his
voice quavering at times, later
adding: “I hope that the players
will see the effort we made to
address their concerns in this
agreement as an olive branch in
terms of building a better rela-
tionship.”
A frenzy of free-agency ac-
tion was expected. A freeze on
roster transactions was dis-
solved Thursday night, spur-
ring a wave of speculation
about new homes for Car-
los Correa, Freddie Freeman
and more than 100 other free
agents who had been kept in
lockout limbo.
The deal brings major
changes that include expan-
sion of the DH to the National
League, increasing the post-
season from 10 teams to 12,
advertisements on uniforms, a
balanced schedule that reduces
intradivision play starting in
2023 and measures aimed to
incentivize competition and
decrease rebuilding, such as an
amateur draft lottery. Most of
the labor fight, of course, cen-
tered on the game’s core eco-
nomics.
The players’ executive board
approved the five-year contract
at about 3 p.m. in a 26-12 vote.
Owners ratified the deal 30-0
just three hours later, and just
like that, baseball’s ninth work
stoppage ended.
Not that all is resolved.
Union head Tony Clark did not
appear alongside Manfred and
scheduled a separate news con-
ference for Friday, a visible sign
of the sport’s factions.
“Our union endured the sec-
ond-longest work stoppage in
its history to achieve signifi-
cant progress in key areas that
will improve not just current
players’ rights and benefits, but
those of generations to come,”
Clark said in a statement.
Manfred pledged “maybe to
more regularly get to the bot-
tom of player concerns so that
they don’t build up.”
“I spoke to Tony after their
ratification vote. I told him that
I thought we had a great op-
portunity for the game in front
of us.” Manfred said. “One of
the things that I’m supposed to
do is promote a good relation-
ship with our players. I’ve tried
to do that. I think that I have
not been successful in that. I
think that it begins with small
steps.”
Players’ pictures that had
been scrubbed from the
league’s website were restored.
Teams tweeted videos and
statements celebrating the
lockout’s end and sharing info
about tickets for the new open-
ing day.
The 184 games canceled by
Manfred were instead post-
poned, and the regular season
was extended by three days to
Oct. 5. Approximately three
games per team will be made
up as part of doubleheaders.
With pitchers Max Scher-
zer and Andrew Miller tak-
ing prominent roles as union
spokesmen, players let three
management deadlines pass
— Manfred called them “the
art of collective bargaining” —
before accepting an agreement
before the fourth.
While the union’s execu-
tive subcommittee voted 8-0
against the deal — all earned
$3.5 million or more last year
— player representatives were
in favor by 26-4.
“Time and economic lever-
age. No agreement comes to-
gether before those two things
play out,” Manfred said. “I
think we made an agreement
when it was possible to make
an agreement.”
After narrowing the eco-
nomic gap this week, MLB
made another offer Thursday
afternoon, saying this was the
absolute, final, last moment
to preserve full salary and
service time.
Logsdon 4 1-2 10, Gambleton 2 0-0 5, Quintela 0 0-0 0,
Younger 0 0-0 0, Molina 0 0-0 0, Spike 3 2-2 10, Jones 5 0-0 11,
Long 1 0-1 2, Hobson 3 1-2 9. Totals 18 4-7 47.
JUNCTION CITY (58)
Bodely 0 0-0 0, Farrald 0 0-0 0, Burnett 13 4-4 30, Riley 0 0-0
0, Harter 0 0-0 0, Ohman 1 0-0 3, Kister 1 0-0 3, Ward 0 0-0 0,
Knabe 4 2-4 10, Dobi 0 0-0 0, Evans 4 4-6 12, Espinoza 0 0-0 0.
Totals 23 10-14 58.
Baker
13
10
16
8 — 47
Junction City
15
14
16
13 — 58
to get Baker within 43-37 late
in the quarter.
Jones scored the last basket
of the third quarter and the
first of the fourth to get Baker
within 45-41.
After a Tiger basket, Gam-
bleton twisted in a reverse layin
to make it 47-43.
But Burnett, as always, stifled
the Bulldogs’ comeback bid.
He scored two straight in-
side baskets, and Knabe added
a free throw during a key 5-0
run that boosted the Tigers’
lead to 52-43 with 2:08 left in
the game.
Baker went more than 2
minutes without a point during
that decisive stretch.
The Bulldogs were forced to
foul, and the Tigers made five
free throws down the stretch
to extend the lead before
Logsdon had a steal and
layin for the final points.
Jebron Jones said he
was proud of his team’s
resilience and effort as
they tried to overcome
Junction City’s lead for
the majority of the game.
“It was a tough one,”
Jones said. “The young
men fought hard to the
very end.”
Jones said he felt badly
for Long.
“I know he was
bummed, after all the
hard work he had put in
to come back from the
first injury,” Jones said.
“But he did a wonder-
ful job cheering on his
teammates.”
A barrage of 3-pointers early and
a rally late weren’t quite enough to
extend the Baker boys basketball
team’s stay at the Class 4A state
tournament in Coos Bay as the Bull-
dogs lost 67-60 to Philomath Friday
morning, March 11.
Coming off a 58-47 loss to Junction
City in a quarterfinal game on Thurs-
day, March 10, the Bulldogs returned
to the court less than 24 hours later
with torrid shooting in the first half
against Philomath in a consolation
semifinal game at Marshfield High
School in Coos Bay.
With a berth in the fourth-place
game Saturday morning and the po-
tential to win a trophy at stake, the
Bulldogs made 7 of 14 3-pointers in
the first half. Paul Hobson was 4 for 6,
Isaiah Jones 2 for 3 and Jaxon Logs-
don 1 of 2.
Baker shot 13 of 25 overall from the
field, and 6 of 9 from the free throw
line to take a 39-26 lead at halftime.
Philomath was that close only be-
cause the Warriors shot at an even
higher percentage — 12 for 19, 63%.
But Philomath was just 1 of 5 from
3-point range, and 1 for 4 from the
free throw line.
Baker extended its lead to 43-28 on
Hudson Spike’s layin early in the third
quarter.
But Philomath dominated most of
the rest of the way.
The Warriors had a 16-2 run to get
within 45-44 with 1:44 left in the third
quarter.
Jones and Hobson each made a
3-pointer in the final 1:24 to boost
Baker’s lead back to 51-46 entering
the final period.
But the Warriors continued to
shoot at a high rate at the start of the
fourth quarter, and Baker couldn’t
keep pace. Cameron Ordway made
consecutive 3-pointers to give Philo-
math its first lead, 54-53, with 6:32 left
in the game. The Warriors extended
the lead to 58-53, but Baker got as
close as 58-56 on Spike’s free throw
with 4:58 left.
Turnovers proved costly for Baker
down the stretch, however.
The long-range shooting went Phi-
lomath’s way in the second half, as the
Warriors made five 3-pointers while
Baker cooled off, making just two.
Spike led Baker with 20 points.
Jones had 19 and Hobson 17 as the
Bulldogs finished the season with a
19-7 record.
Rich, poor,
old, young.
Compassion
doesn’t
discriminate.
Our calling is you.