Taft and Toledo gave Sweet Home a rough week in boys varsity basketball.
The Huskies lost 59-35 at Taft on Dec. 8 and 67-56 hosting Toledo Friday.
Against Taft, “we didn’t play very good at all,” said Coach Drew Emmert. “We didn’t come out with any energy.”
Taft opened up with a 22-8 run in the first quarter and kept pouring it on through the second to take a 47-14 lead at halftime.
The Huskies faced a 1-3-1 zone, and they didn’t score well through it, Emmert said.
“I think our guys realized we weren’t playing with a lot of heart,” Emmert said. They held Taft to just 12 points in the last half, six points in each quarter, while scoring nine in the third and 12 in the fourth.
“It was too little too late,” Emmert said. “We played definitely harder in the second half.”
Daniel Virtue led the Huskies at the hoop, scoring 11 points. Tyler Plebuch added another nine. Keanu Aiona hit a three pointer. Christian Chase led Taft with 21 points. He sank three threes, with an additional three each from Chance Haun, Brendan Adams and Justin Plechaty.
Sweet Home 8 6 9 12 – 35
Taft 22 25 6 6 – 59
Sweet Home scoring: Daniel Virtue 11, Tyler Plebuch 9, Keanu Aiona 5, Justin Tow 5, Justin Carpenter 3, Nick Rodgers 1, Keegan Holly 1, Jesus Patricio, Logan Kline, Jake Bangot, Tristan Graham, Nick Marler.
Taft Scoring: Christian Chase 21, T. Fisher 10, Gile 9, R. Fisher 6, Plechaty 3, Adams 3, Haun 3, King 2, Zacarias, Stempel.
Isaiah Marchant caused the vast majority of the Huskies’ problem Friday night as he kept Toledo in the game and then led scoring with 31 points, including seven three-pointers, before he fouled out in the fourth quarter.
With four fouls, Marchant, an all-state player last year, was in foul trouble before halftime.
“We started off that game good,” Emmert said. “We didn’t play very good team defense on him.”
The Huskies took an early lead. By the end of the first quarter, they were holding on to a one-point lead, 16-15.
They built up a 12-point lead at one point near the end of the half, but Marchout hit back-to-back threes to keep his team in it, trailing just 34-30.
Toledo dropped into a 3-2 zone, and the Huskies struggled with it as Toledo took a small lead in the third quarter, 48-45.
Toledo expanded that lead by eight, 19-11 in the third quarter.
“So we have some stuff to figure out,” Emmert said, and all of it is doable.
“We did have a tough week,” he said, but like he told his team, they just need to stay together and believe, then they’ll be all right.
Jake Bangot led scoring for the Huskies, with 14 points, including a three-pointer. Virtue added 12, with a three-pointer, and Aiona added 13, with a three.
The Huskies are 0-3. They were scheduled to travel to Yamhill-Carlton on Tuesday and Estacada on Thursday and to host Cascade Friday.
Toledo 15 15 18 19 – 67
Sweet Home 16 18 11 11 – 56
Toledo Scoring: Christian Marchout 31, Cyphert 14, Walker 10, Greenawald 5, Otis 5, Rhymer 2.
Sweet Home scoring: Bangot 14, Aiona 13, Virtue 12, Kline 6, Plebuch 5, Tow 4, Carpenter 2, Rodgers.