Wins against Tokay and Summerville got the week started on a positive note for the Escalon varsity boys basketball team; they did fall in their third game of the week but saw some solid efforts all the way around.
Hosting Tokay on Tuesday, Dec. 2, it was a 66-60 Escalon win, in a game that was close all the way. An 18-10 run in the third quarter made the difference for Escalon.
“It was good to have Logan Huebner back on the court after we held him out for a couple weeks as he recovered from some football injuries,” said head coach Nate Bartelink. “As a four-year varsity starter, he provides so much experience and leadership for us.”
He had a double-double in his first game back, scoring 11 points and pulling down 11 rebounds.
Jake Ferreira had 19 points with 11 rebounds and five steals, Issac Petalio had 14 points and eight rebounds.
“Tokay is a pretty good squad. They have a really talented player,” noted Bartelink. “We changed our defensive coverage on him in the second half as Jake Ferreira exclusively guarded him, and did so very well. Jake made things very difficult on that player to get clean looks, causing some frustration for him. Our offense picked up in the second half as well, but ultimately Jake’s defense on their best player was a huge factor in our victory.”
Conner Jones added 10 points and 13 rebounds, while Ryan Huebner had six points, nine rebounds and four assists.
“We also controlled the glass with five players having eight rebounds or more. It was a solid early season victory,” Bartelink said.
The boys went on the road Wednesday, Dec. 3 and brought home a decisive 68-30 victory from Summerville, outscoring the host Bears 48-12 over the second and third periods.
“After a somewhat slow start, we got going in the second quarter and imposed our will against an inferior team. We forced 30 turnovers throughout the game and dominated the game from the second quarter on,” said Bartelink. “The game got to a running clock in the fourth quarter, but we were able to get everyone ample playing time. It was a good team victory. Nine of our 11 players in uniform got into the scoring column. Sophomore Ryan Huebner has been playing steady, solid basketball for us; seven points, six rebounds in this game.”
Jake Ferreira paced the team with 18 points and five assists in three quarters of play, Logan Huebner had 13 points, six rebounds, four assists and four steals in three quarters. Also, Conner Jones had nine points and eight rebounds, Issac Petalio had eight points and Donovan Martinez put in seven points on the night.
Closing out the week with a road game at Liberty Ranch, the varsity Cougars fell by a close 54-49 decision.
“Liberty Ranch poses a challenge because they have two post players with good size that are very physical. As a team, they were more physical than us and we didn’t handle their physicality well as a team,” noted the coach. “Most of the key statistical categories that I look at after each game were very close. The big difference was how the game was called by the officials, and we weren’t able to adjust to or overcome that. The foul disparity was 21-9, with Liberty Ranch only being whistled for the nine fouls. Several of our guys were in foul trouble throughout, impacting our rhythm.”
Jake Ferreira again was the points leader, with 18 total on six three-point buckets, along with seven rebounds, four assists and three steals. Logan Huebner had 17 points seven rebounds, five assists and four steals, Conner Jones added seven points and Trevor Jansen had five.
“We were able to overcome the foul disparity to a certain extent as the game was close throughout, but Liberty Ranch was able to extend their lead to 10 in the fourth. We chopped their lead down to three with five seconds left. We weren’t able to secure a steal, and had to foul,” Bartelink explained. “Liberty Ranch made their free-throws and pushed the final lead to five points. Our boys gave great effort, but weren’t able to overcome what we thought was a game that was called inconsistently. It was a good learning experience for us as we can’t expect to get calls on the road, and if we don’t, we still have to be able to function and execute through adversity. We’ll learn from this and move on.”
The varsity boys are now 2-2 overall; they were slated to host Golden Valley on Dec. 9 and will be back on the home court hosting Livingston on Thursday, Dec. 11 at 7 p.m.
“We need to continue stacking good days, whether it be at practice or games,” Bartelink said. “We’re hoping to get another senior captain, Ben Ferreira, back on the court for game action. He was cleared for practice last week so he’s close.”
