This past weekend the men’s basketball team headed down to Hawaii for the Surf’s Up Classic in Honolulu hosted by Kalani High School. The team had quite the success, winning both of their games against Luther College and Cal Lutheran respectively in the non-conference matchup, bringing their season record to 3-3.
In the first game on Nov. 28 they played Luther winning 63-61 in a thriller led by senior Nick Holden (Pasadena, Calif.) who scored 16 points and brought in five rebounds and junior Keith Shattuck (Lake Forest Park, Wash.) who scored 13 points and had six rebounds.
It was close throughout the entire game as the Loggers only outscored Luther 34-33 in the first half and again by one in the second half at 29-28. Junior Kohl Meyer (San Diego, Calif.) provided a spark off the bench while stuffing the stat sheet in his 26 minutes with six points, four rebounds, four assists and three steals.
The next day the team battled California Lutheran and handled them a bit easier, winning 63-52. Holden again led the way with a double-double in 14 points and 12 rebounds while adding three steals and one block.
Senior Erin Barber (Puyallup, Wash.) added 14 points and four rebounds while also knocking down a three.
The Loggers’ again had a close first half, going up 28-27 but went onto outscore them 35-25 in the second half and finishing the tournament strong.
With their record now at 3-3 and on the up rise they are looking to build on their momentum and continue to have a strong season. The team has been lead by the contingent of Barber, Holden and Shattuck. They are averaging 16.2, 14.6 and 11.2 points respectively and the total could rise in conference play considering their rising play. All upperclassmen, so they will make a big impact on their seasons as a whole.
Their next game is on Friday Dec. 5 at 7 p.m. against the Banana Slugs from University of California at Santa Cruz. Following that game they will have an away game against Portland Bible on Dec. 9 at 6 p.m.
The conference seasons opens up on Jan. 3 against George Fox at 6 p.m. and sure will be exciting. With five seniors and eight juniors on the team it projects to be a team carried by upperclassmen and because of that a strong one.
Chemistry plays a big part in a longer season such as basketball and this team has it as they look to improve on the 15-12 record from last year where they went 10-6 in the conference.
The games will become more tenacious in conference play, but the Loggers will be ready for it. This season is theirs to take.
