WINNERS! Oregon-Davis Defeats Marquette
By Anthony Gadson
Pilot Sports
HAMLET - The Oregon-Davis Bobcats were finally able to shake off their 56 game losing streak in front of home fans on Thursday night, with a 59-50 victory over the Marquette Blazers.
�I don�t think after we played Culver there were a whole lot of people that thought we could win this year,� Oregon-Davis Coach Travis Hannah said about the naysayers. �But these kids believed and we believed in each other all year long.�
O-D put themselves in a 9-2 deficit to start the game, but Bobcat freshman Shaun Johnston entered the game and was able to spurt his team to a 14-point run, that spanned the end of the first quarter and went into the second quarter. The run helped the Bobcats build a 16-9 advantage.
The Blazers were able to climb within 16-15 with 5:18 in the second quarter, but Bobcat junior Matt Baughman was able to build the lead once again with a field goal and a free throw. The one-point deficit would be the closest the Blazers would get the rest of the night.
Oregon-Davis took a 10-point lead into the locker room at halftime, but Hannah acted no different than he would have if they had been down by that amount.
�The players know that I acted the exact same way,� Hannah said about his temperament at the half. �There were still things we needed to work on.�
The Bobcats went into a 2-3 zone that frustrated the Blazers, as they could find no way to get the ball inside, and also struggled trying to loosen up the zone with 3-point baskets.
�When we noticed them missing shots, we decided to stay in the 2-3 a lot longer than we normally do,� Hannah said about his defensive strategy. �We are trying to get the kids into an aggressive mind frame. But you play to situations, and the situations tonight called for us to stay in that zone.�
O-D opened the second half with a 6-0 run, to build their advantage to the largest of the night at 37-21. The Blazers would continue to fight the rest of the night, but free throw shooting and good defense helped keep the lead at seven points or more.
�Every player that got into the game stepped up,� Hannah said. �Everyone stepped to the line and hit the free throws and took care of the ball when they had to.�
As the crowd began to feel the victory approaching they chanted, �Warm the bus up�. Once the final tick went off the clock, the crowd rushed the court to congratulate their classmates and friends.
�If you come to our games you�d notice we�ve had pretty good crowds,� Hannah said about the hometown support during the losing streak. �So I�m not going to question our community. They know basketball and I just hope this closes a chapter of Oregon-Davis basketball that I�m glad is over.�
Hannah is well aware of the program�s struggles, but is looking to the future.
�I�m still 1-15 this year,� he said about his frame of mind. �I wasn�t here for the first 41 games, so I could care less about those.�
OREGON DAVIS 59, MARQUETTE 50
At Oregon Davis
Oregon Davis: Christian Berlet 0 0-0 0, Casey Krulik 2 0-0 4, Matt Baughman 2 1-3 5, Dean Goble 2 2-2 8, D.J. Jensen 2 2-3 6, James Mangold 0 0-0 0, Seth Dickson 4 6-9 14, Len Ricciardi 0 2-2 2, Shaun Johnston 6 3-6 16, Eric Jensen 0 4-5 4, Devin Akers 0 0-0 0. TOTALS: 18 20-30 59.
Marquette: Patrick Bergerson 6 2-4 14, Patrick Coleman 0 0-0 0, Eric Doster 5 4-5 15, Matt Kelley 4 2-2 11, Zachary Niec 0 0-0 0, Charlie Trainor 2 0-0 4, Gregory Fletcher 1 0-0 2, Zachary Merrill 1 2-2 4. TOTALS: 19 10-13 50.
Score by Quarters
Oregon Davis 12 31 42 59
Marquette 9 21 30 50
3-pointers: Oregon Davis 3 (Dean Goble 2 and Shaun Johnston), Marquette 2 (Eric Doster and Matt Kelley). Total fouls (fouled out): Oregon Davis 14 (none), Marquette 26 (Patrick Bergerson and Charlie Trainor).
JV score: Oregon Davis 59, Marquette 26.
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