Cagers Upset Reimer Rd

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The Cagers were fresh off their fourth straight loss and in dire need of a victory heading to face the always tough Golden Eagles of Reimer Rd. Thanks to a monster game by Aaron Meech, the Cagers pulled off the upset on a cold January evening by a score of 45-34.

This Cager team has a tendency to start off very slowly, and they proved it again after losing the tip. However, Reimer Rd matched their turtle pace, and it was a very ugly game to start the first quarter. Missed layups and opportunities for both teams made it a ho hum affair for the fans in attendance. With the score tied at 4-4, Reimer would hit a 2-point bucket followed by a 3 pointer to take a five-point lead. The turning point for the Cagers came with time running out in the quarter, Meech stepped up and hit a 25-foot jumper at the buzzer to cut the lead to 9-7. It would be the start of a very good game for the senior guard. 

The buzzer beater put a charge in the gym as both teams came out firing in the second quarter. Each team would trade bucket for bucket. Reimer would get a deuce. Ethan Numer would drive on the left baseline for the Cagers and make a layup. Reimer would answer with a bucket. But Nigel Wenger found paydirt for the visitors. It went back and forth all period until it was 21-18 at the halftime horn. “I was really pleased on how we played. They threw multiple defenses at us, and we found solutions. It wasn’t pretty, but we found a way to stay in the game with multiple guys getting in the scoring column,” said Head Coach Doug Hamsher.

The Cagers heard that familiar message of the importance of the first three minutes of the second half. They took it to heart and went to work. Meech would get it going with a bucket. Then Meech found a cutting Wenger behind the zone for a two pointer. Meech would again drive to the hoop, spin, elevate, and put it through and the Cagers had taken a 3-point lead! At the other end, Reimer was as cold as the temperature outside. This gave even more of an opportunity for the Cagers to stay hot. The Cagers whipped the ball around the horn and found an open Numer on the left side. He eyed it, gunned it, and drained it from 20 feet! And the Cagers were on a roll! “That was such a huge shot,” said Hamsher. “It gave us a lot of momentum.” Meech then went to work by scoring on an old-fashioned three-point play. The savvy senior then hit two foul shots. By the end of the third the Cager were up 33-25. 

Reimer Rd is a team that is dangerous. They can score in bunches and the Cagers knew it. Reimer came out and scored a bucket to cut the lead to 6. Then they buried a 3 pointer to cut it to three. Luke DeRodes found the bottom of the net. Reimer would answer. DeRodes again would fight for and win the battle for a 2 pointer. Yet Reimer would answer at the other end. Needing a bucket, Hamsher called timeout to set something up. The play was to pass to big Hudson Copenhaver at the elbow. He was to look for DeRodes streaking backdoor towards the bucket. If DeRodes wasn’t open, Copenhaver was to hand the basketball off football style to Meech. It worked! Meech took the ball to the rim for a layup and that all but broke the spirit of Reimer Rd. The Cagers would then outlast their opponents until the final buzzer sounded. “It was a heck of a game. We found a way to beat a good team on their home floor tonight,” said Hamsher.

Besides a game high 23 for Meech, DeRodes fired in a quiet 13. Ethan Numer had 5 points. And Nigel Wenger rounded out the scorebook with 4.