Boys' basketball team wins two

Constant pressure and platooning of players led to the 68-44 Sisters' victory at Burns on Friday, January 5.

Burns proved to be a scrappy team at home on their small court, and the Highlanders were able to slow down the Outlaws early. Nothing came easy for Sisters in the first half.

Poor shooting and early foul trouble forced the Outlaws to change line-ups and hindered Sisters from running their up tempo offense.

"Whenever a foul was called, it stopped the clock, and that stops us from running and throws our rhythm off," said Coach Rand Runco. "The key is to keep the clock running and platoon our players so we can keep the whole game a track meet."

At the half Sisters trailed the Highlanders 28-30.

The entire Outlaws' team stepped up their intensity in the second half, and the defense turned up the press and created more turnovers which allowed Sisters to get up to pace.

The Outlaws outscored Burns 40-14 in the second half to secure the non-league victory.

Nate Jackson and Jeff Sampson had a standout game and really stepped up their play in the second half. Jackson had 18 points in the second half and finished with a total of 21 points. Jackson hit five threes and had four steals in the second half. Sampson had 13 points and was a key factor on the boards for the Outlaws. According to Runco, both players did a great job on defense. Runco also noted that Cody Tadlock and Taylor Davenport did a great job rebounding the ball.

"The win was such a team effort," said Runco. "We played 13 guys, and 10 of the 13 scored. I'm so pleased. Our young team is improving each game, but we've still got a long way to go. The system we're running is so extreme. We have to believe in the outcome of the game. It's hard to give up easy buckets but keeping the correct pace is what causes fatigue in the other team and really allows us to come on in the second half."

Two days earlier a great team effort led to the Outlaws' 103-84 home victory over Elmira.

The Outlaws' win in their first league game of the season was due to the steady improvement the team has made over the past two weeks.

Coach Rand Runco said, "The key to the win was that we got 44 percent of our offensive boards."

Posts Jeff Sampson, Zach Lange, Cody Tadlock, Michael Reeve and Carter Davenport did a great job on the boards and got the transition started for the Outlaws. Michael Reeve finished the night with eight rebounds. Jarred Hasskamp had seven boards, and both Sampson and Nate Jackson had five.

Point guards Daniel Ketchum and Tanner Hodges did an excellent job of keeping the offensive pressure on Elmira and got the ball quickly up the court to the Outlaws' wings. Slater Smith and Cory McCaffrey led the pressure defense, and five players finished in double figures.

Jarred Hasskamp led the scoring with 28 points, including five three-pointers. Dan Ketchum had 18, and Tanner Hodges had 15 points. Nate Jackson put up 14 points for the Outlaws, and Jeff Sampson added 10. Ketchum and Hodges each contributed four assists.

The Outlaws host top ranked Cottage Grove at home on Friday, January 12. The boys' team has won four of their last five games, are 5-6 overall and 1-0 in league play.