Warriors Too Tough for the Cagers
February 9, 2024
The Cagers arguably put forth their best performance of the season against the Warsaw Warriors on Friday night, only to come up on the losing end. The final score of 69-49 does not tell the whole story.
At the start of the game both teams found their groove early and often. Warsaw shredded the Cager 2-3 zone with a combination of outside and inside play. At the other end, execution ruled the quarter for the Cagers Led by 6-2 senior Trent Roe, the Cagers ripped apart the zone employed by Warsaw. Roe found a hole and a layup. Followed by a 3-pointer. And then another 3-pointer. Anthony Gonzalez would pull it from deep and nail it! The Cagers were on fire! Right at the end of the quarter, Roe found a hole in the back of the zone where Gonzalez would find him for an easy two. Roe had 10 points in the quarter. At the end of 8 minutes, the Cagers were down 18-13.
The second quarter was another lesson in execution. Due to the success of the Cagers, Warsaw went to a man to man. That’s when things went old school for the hosts. The Cagers (1-13) got a little real estate out of their pick and roll offense with Luke DeRodes rolling to the hoop for two. But it was a set from legendary coach John Wooden’s playbook that worked. Using the 1-4 high set, the Cagers would find a plethora of ways to score. DeRodes would find Roe on a back door. DeRodes and Roe would work the pick and roll from the high post. A fake handoff and DeRodes would drive to the hole resulting in foul shots. It was fun basketball. The Cagers started putting these sets in a few weeks ago and tonight they worked. In a day and age where all offenses run through some type of high ball screen or dribble drive, using an old school offense is something different for the fans to watch. “We executed very well in both quarters. Especially in the second quarter when we went 1-4 high. In my opinion, that’s the way basketball should be played,” said Coach Hamsher. The Cagers would chip away at the lead thanks to another 9 points by Roe. At the horn it was 29-26 in favor of Warsaw.
The third period is when Warsaw started to pull away. On the defensive end, they upped the pressure and on offense they started to run resulting in easy layups at the other end. This year’s Cager bunch is not built for an up and down game due to only having 6 players. Halfway through the period the Cagers were gassed and their legs were heavy. Roe and Gonzalez would add a bucket a piece, and DeRodes would fire in 4 free throws to pace the Cagers. By the end of 3, the Warriors held a commanding 13-point lead.
The Cagers would start the 4th quarter by trapping the Warriors. It caused three straight turnovers. However, the Cagers would only convert one of those opportunities on a deuce from DeRodes. It wasn’t a sustainable pace as the Cagers legs got weary. Offensively, DeRodes stepped up to the plate. He would score 10 points in the quarter including back-to-back 3-pointers. The Cagers also got a bucket each from Gonzalez and Bridger Campbell to round out the scoring. Hamsher was very pleased with his team’s effort. “We played the best half we have played all year. We fought till the end. They did everything I asked them to do, and we met almost all of our character goals. This team is maximizing its potential, and that is all a coach can ask for.” For the game, the scoring column looked like this: Roe had 22 points (19 first half), DeRodes added 18 points, Gonzalez had 7 and Campbell had two.
