Blazer Classic Recap
February 2-3, 2024
The Cagers made the trek to Wilmot, Ohio to play in the first round of the Blazer Classic. They drew the host team, Faith Christian Academy (FCA), and came out on the losing end 35-28. The Cagers started slow once again and found themselves down 10-4 at the end of the first period. Anthony Gonzalez would nail a deep 3 from the left side to pace the Cagers. Both teams were ice cold in the second quarter totaling a combined 10 points. However, the Cagers scored 6 of those 10 led by Gonzalez who would swish a high arching shot from downtown, and Trent Roe who found paydirt on a drive to the hoop. Add a FT by Luke DeRodes and the Cagers were down 14-10 at half time. The Cagers would come alive in the second half thanks to Roe. The 6-2 swing man scored 8 points in the third quarter on a myriad of drives to the hoop and rebound putbacks. “Trent is a very good athlete, and he showed his ability to get to the rim and his bounce off the floor to grab rebounds,” said Head Coach Doug Hamsher. DeRodes would add a bucket of his own and by the time the quarter horn sounded, the Cagers had cut the lead to 22-20. The Cagers were holding steady on the defensive end holding the Blazers to well under their point average. Roe opened up the quarter with a bucket to tie the game. Then Roe would hit a 3-pointer to put the Cagers up by three points. FCA would add a bucket to cut the lead to one point. Then DeRodes spotted up from the right wing and nailed a 3-pointer! The Cagers were up by 28-24 with just under 4 minutes to play. “I thought we came out swinging in the quarter. We had all the momentum until Faith scored on back-to-back possessions to take a one-point lead. That changed the momentum of the game,” said Hamsher. Even though the Cagers had several pointblank looks in the final minutes, they could not convert. They were forced to foul and FCA went 6 of 6 from the line to seal the game. Roe led all scorers with 15. DeRodes had 7 and Gonzalez rounded out the scoring column with 6.
Wooster Christian-45 Cagers-30
The Cagers took an hour break before playing Wooster Christian School (WCS) in the losers bracket. The 8pm start time was not kind to the locals as Wooster Christian raced out to a 15-6 lead. The Eagles would hit on three 3-pointers in the frame. “WCS is a very quick team and pressed us. It sped us up, and we couldn’t handle the pace. Plus, they have multiple shooters that made shots. Roe continued his hot play as he fired in 6 first quarter points and a bucket in the second frame to pace the Cagers. By the end of the first half, it was all WCS 21-9. The Cagers came alive in the third quarter. Daylan Nussbaum had two buckets in the lane. DeRodes added 4 points and a FT. Roe had another bucket to his total. But there was no stopping WCS. They caught fire and scored 20 in the quarter on 3 more bombs from downtown to lead 41-20 going into the fourth quarter. Even though Roe and DeRodes would combine to score all 10 Cager points in the quarter, it was too little too late as WCS finished the quarter by resting their starting 5. Roe led all scorers with 16. DeRodes had 9. Nussbaum tallied 4. And Bridger Campbell added a FT to round out the scoring for the Cagers.
Saturday—Kingsway-29 Cagers-23
With a three-game guarantee, the Cagers found themselves facing the Kingsway Eagles. It was a game that saw the momentum shift several times. Unfortunately for the Cagers, it shifted away from them one too many times. The Cagers played inspired ball in the first quarter. Their pick and roll offense was working. DeRodes used the offense to cash in on 6 points. Campbell had a monster rebound and put back in the frame. Roe would add a FT and the Cagers were ahead 9-6. However, Kingsway flexed its muscles in the second period scoring 14 points and holding the Cagers to just 3. At the end of the first half, Kingsway held the lead 20-12. The third quarter took basketball back to a bygone era of low scoring. Kingsway scored only 5 points and the Cagers could only manage 3 points, two of which came on another huge rebound and put back by Campbell. It was 25-15 to start the 4th. The Cagers would cut it to 25-19 on two FTs by Gonzalez and a bucket by DeRodes. But that is as close as it got. The Cagers just could not convert their opportunities. Kingsway would go 4-4 from the line to stretch the lead to 10 with about 90 ticks on the clock. The Cagers would score two quick buckets to cut the lead to 6, but time ran out. “Our defense played great in the fourth quarter. Kingsway has some playmakers, and we managed to hold them in check and gave ourselves an opportunity to make this game interesting,” said Hamsher. In the loss, Hamsher was proud of this group. “I know we are losing games on the scoreboard, but we are winning as young men. We are now hitting most of our character goals, our chemistry is very good, and we are starting to execute. Things we weren’t doing in the beginning of the year. Our growth has been exponential.” For the game DeRodes led the Cagers with 13. Roe and Campbell had 4 a piece, with Gonzalez chipping in a bucket.
