Outlaws hoopsters face top teams at Phoenix Tournament

The boys basketball team faced three tough local teams from the Medford area at the Phoenix Tournament Thursday through Saturday, December 15-17, and ended the tourney with one win and two losses.

On Thursday night Sisters defeated the 6A Crater Comets 61-57 in a wild game. Crater is an athletic team and plays a high-risk, high-gain pressing trap full-game defense. That type of play forces opponents into an up-tempo style of play.

At the close of the first quarter Sisters held a slim 13-12 advantage. It was a tight second quarter also, and at the half Sisters was up 26-24. From there it was a whole new ballgame. In the second half Sisters was up by 11 at one point and then down by 11 at another. The Outlaws were down by seven with less than four minutes to go and came back to win by four.

John Erickson put up 28 points to lead the Outlaws in scoring.

"John had a huge game and played excellent," said Coach Rand Runco. "He was amazing; slashing, attacking and blowing their press apart when it was needed. It was absolutely a great effort."

Bryan Boswell also had a terrific game. Boswell had a personal season-high 12 points, blocked shots and had an incredible night rebounding. Chase Goff stepped up and scored eight points and had several key assists, and Cole Moore did a great job defensively down the stretch.

"We haven't faced a team like this before, and it was a great game," said Runco. "The team hung in there while we were down and battled back to win the game."

Sisters suffered a 63-46 loss to Phoenix, the defending state champions, in their next game of the tourney.

The Outlaws had a great first quarter and trailed Phoenix by just two at 15-13. At the half Phoenix had pushed to a 32-26 advantage. The contest was actually closer than the final score indicates due to Sisters taking risks and pressing at the end of the game.

John Erickson led the team with 16 points, followed by Eli Harrison who scored 12. Jalen Miller contributed eight points and also had five assists.

Runco said, "Jalen really came ready to play, penetrated the key and got to the foul line."

Ryan Gridley, Tim Hernandez, and Zach Cummings all were big contributors off the bench.

Runco said, "It was a good pre-season battle for most of the game. Our team played well on both ends and we handled their posts, but we had a really tough time containing their point guard. We brought extra help which worked for awhile but then he continued to penetrate and hit shots in the paint over our help. He drilled us with 32 points. Offensively, we rushed things and allowed Phoenix too many possessions with their high-powered guard play. We were possibly trying a little too hard rather than trusting that we needed to play as a team for the entire game. Overall, I'm really proud of the guys' effort and fight."

Sisters fell 52-46 to top 3A Cascade Christian (CC) in their final game of the tournament. The Outlaws started off in perfect tempo to take a quick 10-6 lead. Early in the second quarter the Outlaws got some transition buckets and jumped to an 11-point lead. At that point things started to unravel, and Sisters lost their men on two straight possessions and gave up two threes, which brought CC within range. The Outlaws battled and at the half held a four-point lead.

Sisters gave up nine shots next to the basket in the third quarter. Cascade Christian spread the court well, and Sisters had to chase the rest of the game.

"This was a rough game," said Runco. "In the second half it felt like our minds and bodies were fatigued and we shot too many quick threes to try and catch up."

Runco summed up the experience: "It was a great tournament with some of the state's toughest teams in attendance. Phoenix, Sisters, Cascade Christian and Newport are four of the top teams in their divisions. We learned some very valuable lessons."

Earlier in the week, on Tuesday, December 13, the Outlaws beat Madras with a final score of 50-43.

Madras came out in a triangle and two and took it to the Outlaws in the first quarter with a 16-5 lead. In the second quarter Sisters started to step it up. The team made some offensive adjustments and got rolling.

The Outlaws also made some defensive adjustments and shut down the White Buffaloes in the third quarter and only allowed two free throws. Sisters went up by 10 to start the fourth quarter and broke the Buffs press. Unfortunately, the Outlaws didn't capitalize and attack, which allowed Madras to cut the gap to seven at the end.

Eli Harrison was the Outlaws' leading scorer with 18 points. Jalen Miller had 11 points and John Erickson and Chase Goff each logged 10.

"Sebastian (Boehm) hit a big three in the second that helped us break their defensive stand," said Runco. "Bryan (Boswell) and Bryce (Alderman) were tough on the glass, and Cole (Moore) and Tim (Hernandez) played some tough defense."

"It was a good win with lots of learning," said Runco. "I knew we would figure out their defensive scheme but was concerned about giving up easy looks in transition and in the paint. I'm just not totally pleased with our defense so far this season. That will be key to our success. But, it was good to beat a very good Madras team at Madras."

The Outlaws will host their Holiday Tournament Tuesday through Thursday, December 27-29 and are anxious to play at home for the first time since December 3.