Boys basketball holds on for win

The boy's basketball team came out on top, 46-43, in a satisfying battle with Cascade on Thursday, December 10.

Sisters played their tough half-court defense against the tall and athletic, top-ranked Cougars. The Outlaws were able to handle Cascade's 1-3-1 zone and their 2-3 zone well.

Drew Harrison was on fire in the first quarter and hit three three-pointers for the Outlaws. Rodney Warner and John Erickson also hit big three-pointers, and at the close of the period Sisters held a 17-14 lead.

Sisters tore Cascade's zone defense apart and forced the Cougars to switch to a man-to-man defense. Pressure from the Outlaws was too much for Cascade to handle, and Sisters pulled away from the much-taller Cougar team. At the end of the third, Sisters held a 37-29 advantage.

Sisters went up by nine in the final period with just minutes left in the game, but the Cougars persevered and went to a full-court press which proved to be a problem for Sisters. The Outlaws missed a few key shots and Cascade was back in the game. The Cougars pulled to within two, and then point guard Jalen Miller hit two key freethrows to put the Outlaws up by four and out of reach in the final seconds of the game.

Rebounding and great defensive play by Drew Harrison and Cory Holt, and key minutes off the bench from Jordan Hodges, were instrumental in the Outlaws' victory.

Harrison scored 21 points for the Outlaws, Erickson and Miller each contributed eight, and Warner pitched in for seven.

"It was a great game and moved us to 2-2 overall in our incredibly tough pre-season," said Coach Rand Runco.

Two days earlier the Outlaws lost 61-43 to Summit. The game was scheduled to be played in Sisters but was switched to Summit due to the power outage.

Sisters played a good first and second quarter and led by five at the half, 24-19.

Summit increased their defensive pressure in the third period and hit the Outlaws with the first trapping defense of the season. The Storm outscored Sisters 18-6 in the third and at the close of the quarter held a 37-30 lead. Summit went on to win by 18.

"It took us too long to adjust, and in that time we had lost our lead and had to fight a catch-up game. The boys fought a good battle and our defense held strong other than a few minutes in the third quarter," said Runco.

John Erickson led Sisters' scorers with 18 points. Drew Harrison had an impressive performance with 16 points, eight rebounds and five assists.

"Our team defense improved again, but we need to step up the offense," said Runco. "The young Outlaws are facing one of the toughest pre-season schedules of Outlaws history. It is going to toughen us up for league."

The Outlaws faced the 5A White Buffaloes at Madras on Tuesday, December 15, and then travel to Central on Saturday, December 19, to take on last year's state runner-up. Saturday's game is set to begin at 2:30 p.m.