The Husky boys basketball team brought down one of the top powerhouses in the state when they beat Philomasth 52-47 at home on Friday.
“It was the biggest game in three years,” Coach Tim Little said. “It was my biggest game as head coach by far and probably our biggest crowd, so that was nice.”
The Huskies trailed 9-6 after one quarter, Little said. Philomath’s 6-6 leading scorer Ben Motter got into foul trouble, he sat much of the second quarter; but the Huskies couldn’t get much going and headed into halftime trailing 22-20.
Coming out in the third, “we had to make a stand,” Little said. “We had to get a couple stops, get a couple of baskets and assert ourselves.”
The Huskies did just that, getting necessary stops and turning those into points and a two-point lead. P.J. Steeves put up a three to put the Warriors back in the lead by one, but that would be the last time Philomath would lead as Ricky Worley answered with his own three, giving the Huskies the lead for good.
“We took the lead by two and didn’t look back at that point,” Little said. At the end of the third quarter, Ryan Graville hit a three, and then he opened the fourth with another three, “just big buckets for a sophomore to knock down in a game like that.”
Brandon Weist led the Huskies, scoring 17, Little said. “He hit four clutch free throws to guarantee the victory.”
Nathan Whitfield and Weist both shared time guarding Motter, the big man, Little said. They allowed him one bucket all night, and Little blamed himself for that one.
The inside crew, Jon Ball, Josh Riggs, Whitfield and Weist defended well, disrupting “what they were trying to do offensively,” Little said. Against a big, strong inside offense, they gave up only seven offensive boards, meeting the team’s goal for the first time this season.
Gabe Kauffman added 11 points for the Huskies; Colton Emmert, nine; Graville, six; Worley, five; Riggs, two; and Whitfield, two. Ray Lingenfelter and Ball played but did not score.
For Philomath, Kyle Thorsness led scoring with 14 points. Steeves added 13.
“Philomath came into our place, third best in the state off a win against Yamhill-Carlton, which was ranked number one in the AP polls,” Little said. Emotions were high going into that game just based on that, but it was also the first night of league.
“It was a huge game for our kids,” Little said. “I think what we got out of the win was just the focus of when we do concentrate and play the way we’re taught, we’re capable of beating any team no matter who they are.
“When we play together and are focused mentally, we’re a tough team to beat.”
Heading into league play, the Huskies were 4-7 overall after playing several top-10 teams in the sixth toughest 4A schedule in the state, Little said. “I think that built us a ton of character. We were able to develop some of that mental toughness that we’ll keep on developing.”
Going into the first league game, “our record now is 0-0,” Little said. “It doesn’t matter what we’ve done before.”
Coming out of the game, the Huskies’ record is 1-0 in league and 5-7 overall.
Philomath was picked preseason to win the league, Little said. Everyone else in the league holds a similar preseason record to the Huskies.
Next, the Huskies travel to Newport on Tuesday night. They will be at home again Jan. 19 against Central.