Basketball Roundup – December 18, 2018
By Terry Futrell
Chaos noun :a state of utter confusion. To the several examples of chaos offered by the dictionary, you can add a new one – District 3-1A basketball! For two game nights in a row, the district-leading boys team was knocked from their lofty perch. The district-leading girls team was soundly defeated. The only winless boys team in the district scored a decisive victory. The Oakdale Lady Eagles exceeded their season scoring average by 25 points. Has the unexpected become the norm for District 3-1A basketball?
Rockwood Knocks Off District-leading Oakdale 65-57
Just one game after being restored to their number one position in the district, the Oakdale Eagles boys were shocked at home by the Rockwood Tigers 65-57 for their second district loss of the season. Rockwood jumped out to an early 18-6 lead in the 1st quarter and never trailed. The Tigers had a commanding 34-20 lead at the half, led 49-35 after three, and fought off an Oakdale comeback effort in the fourth to win by eight points.
Rockwood was led by Brett Sands with 17 points and Tahj Bazel with 11 points. Garrett Best led the Eagles with 20 points and Rhett Nelson scored 16 points. While the Eagles connected on nine 3-point baskets, they scored only 20 points from within the arc. Rockwood connected on 13 2-point shots and eight treys. The Tigers outscored Oakdale 15-10 at the free throw line.
Oakdale drops from first to third place in the district with a 5-2 record, trailing Harriman and Wartburg.
Midway Girls Shock Wartburg 81-58
Anyone who has followed area basketball for several years knows there are few absolutes, but there is one thing that you can always count on. If you are traveling South of the River to play a Mike Hayes coached girls team at Midway, you had better bring your A-game. Obviously, Wartburg failed to do that as the district-leading Lady Bulldogs were soundly defeated by Midway 81-58. The Lady Green Wave took a 20-8 lead in the 1st quarter and the Lady Bulldogs could never recover. Midway led 42-29 at the half, 56-38 after three, and closed out with a big 25-point 4th quarter to win by 23 points.
Midway pulled off the major upset scoring only two 3-point baskets, while connecting on 24 2-pointers compared to Wartburg’s 13. Midway outscored the Lady Bulldogs 27-8 at the free throw line, hitting an astounding 87% of their free throws. Wartburg was called for 22 personal fouls, compared to only 14 for Midway. Three Lady Bulldogs fouled out of the game.
Midway had four players score in double figures. Rebecca Lemasters led all scorers with 20 points, Emily Cawood was close behind with 18 points, Caitlyn Ross scored 16 points, and Paige Bacon scored 11 points. Wartburg was led by Madison Holley with 13 points, Olivia Davis added 12 points, and Regan Redmon contributed 11 points.
Wartburg falls to 5-1 in district play and now trails Sunbright and Oneida, both of which remain undefeated in the district.
Sunbright Tigers Score First District Victory over Oliver Springs 74-60
After dropping their first four district games by an average of only eight points, the Sunbright Tigers put together a complete game and knocked off Oliver Springs 74-60 on the Bobcats home court. Sunbright led 14-9 at the end of one, and expanded their lead to 36-22 at the half. The Tigers kept the heat on in the 3rd quarter, outscoring the Bobcats 22-13, and then cruised to the 14-point victory.
The Tigers were successful going inside, scoring 26 2-point baskets, compared to only 16 for the Bobcats. Both teams scored four 3-point baskets. Oliver Springs outscored the Tigers at the free throw line 16-10.
Sunbright was led by Hunter Bunch with 21 points, followed by John Freels with 16 points, and Wes Bohanan added 14 points. Bobcat Blake Nation led all scorers with 25 points and Riley Walker added 23 points.
Sunbright’s district record is now 1-4. The Bobcats move to the cellar of District 3-1A with a 1-6 record.
Lady Eagles Pound Rockwood 58-31
The Oakdale Lady Eagles topped 50 points in scoring for the first time this season with a 58-31 victory over the Rockwood Lady Tigers. The 58 points scored by the Lady Eagles exceeds their season scoring average by 25 points. Oakdale took a huge 20-5 lead in the 1st quarter and held on for a 35-18 half-time lead. The Oakdale defense held Rockwood to only two points in the third quarter, while the Lady Eagles put 12 more points on the board to lead 47-20. Both teams scored 11 points in the final quarter, keeping Oakdale’s margin of victory at 27 points.
The Lady Eagles scored on 15 2-point baskets and six treys, while the Lady Tigers scored seven 2-pointers and four treys. Oakdale shot 83% from the free throw line, outscoring Rockwood 10-5 at the charity stripe.
Oakdale was led by Amelia Miller with 20 points and Victoria Jones with 19 points. Karlee Bowling scored 13 points for Rockwood.
The victory keeps Oakdale solidly in sixth place in District 3-1A with 3-4 district record. Rockwood continues to share last place with Coalfield with an 0-5 record.
Lady Jackets Fall to Oneida 59-29
The Coalfield Lady Jackets were defeated by the Oneida Lady Indians 59-29. Oneida took a 14-3 lead in the 1st quarter and never looked back. Oneida led 33-13 at the half and 50-21 after three. Oneida’s defense held the Lady Jackets to a total of eight field goals in the game.
Oneida used a pressure defense to throttle the Lady Jackets. On the offensive end of the court, Oneida’s quick passing and ball movement created openings in the Jacket defense.
Oneida was led by Kendyl West with 17 points and Gracie Martin with 10 points. Leeah Henry scored 10 points for the Lady Jackets, including two treys, followed by Meghan Lowe with seven points.
Coalfield’s district record is now 0-5 – the Lady Jackets share last place with 0-5 Rockwood.
Coalfield Downed by Oneida 68-41
The Coalfield Yellow Jackets jumped out to a 14-9 1st quarter lead over the visiting Oneida Indians before falling behind in the 2nd period, ultimately losing to the Indians 68-41. Oneida led 31-22 at the half, and 52-38 after three. Coalfield was only able to put three points on the board in the 4th quarter.
The Yellow Jackets were impressive in their speed and scoring in the opening period. Coalfield substituted freely, and the Jacket reserves performed well early in the game. Oneida switched to a zone press and half-court zone defense that effectively shut the Jackets down for the remainder of the game.
Oneida scored on 28 field goals, including six treys. Coalfield only scored 14 field goals, including four 3-pointers.
Oneida’s Kelby Morgan led all scorers with 24 points. Chancery Botts and Nate Bowling added 16 points each for the Indians. Alex Hawk had nine points on three treys for the Jackets. Nathan Harvey and Jeffrey Speer contributed eight points each for the Jackets.
Coalfield drops to a 1-4 district record and falls to a tie with Sunbright, positioned just above last placed Oliver Springs.
Lady Tigers Defeat Oliver Springs 45-37
The Sunbright Lady Tigers maintained their perfect district record by downing Oliver Springs 45-37. The Lady Tigers had balanced scoring over the first three periods and used a 15-7 scoring advantage in the 2nd quarter to build a lead that they maintained for the rest of the game. Sunbright led 13-12 after one, expanded the lead to 28-19 at the half, and increased the lead to 40-29 after three.
Sunbright and Oliver Springs each scored 14 2-point field goals, but the Lady Tigers had a 4-2 advantage in 3-point shooting. Ashton Brown shot two treys, and Olivia Northrup and Taylor Cox each added one.
Makenna Brown led all scorers with 18 points, while Taylor Cox added 11 points and Olivia Northrup 10 points. Laci Hester scored 12 points for the Lady Bobcats and Mabel Johnson added 10 points.
With the defeat of Wartburg by Midway, Sunbright and Oneida remain the only undefeated teams in District 3-1A, each with a 5-0 record.
Bulldogs Defeat Midway 78-66
The Wartburg Central Bulldogs bounced back from their tough loss to Harriman last Friday and defeated the Midway Green Wave 78-66. The Bulldogs trailed Midway 17-16 after the 1st quarter, but took a 42-41 lead at the half. The Bulldogs stepped up their defense in the second half, outscoring Midway 36-25.
Both Wartburg and Midway scored 26 field goals, but the Bulldogs had a 9-5 advantage on 3-point baskets. Wartburg’s greatest advantage came at the free throw line where they outscored Midway 17-9. Wartburg had 26 free throw attempts, compared to Midway’s 13 attempts.
Bulldog Jake Branstetter led all scorers with 22 points. Elijah Langley added 15 points, Colby Justes had 12 points, and Caleb McCarty added 10 points. Midway was led by Blaine Townsend with 18 points, Emmett Hegland with 15 points, and Blake Parks with 14 points.
Coupled with Oakdale’s defeat by Rockwood, the victory moves Wartburg into second place in the district behind the Harriman Blue Devils. Both have 5-1 district records, but Harriman’s win over Wartburg last Friday gives them the edge for first place.