The intensity of the rivalry between Clarkston and Pontiac Northern was at its apex on Friday night, when the Huskies took round one of the season series, 75-67.
This chapter of the legacy aligned with the Wolves (5-2, 1-1 OAA) ranked no. 10 in the state in Class A and Northern (7-1, 2-0 OAA) ranked no. 4 and first place in Oakland Activities Association division I.
The Huskies? home floor was noisy and hot as usual, but the rising mercury could have been due in part to Northern’s trapping the Wolves, which caused several Clarkston turnovers.
‘Give credit to them, when they turned the heat up, we couldn’t counter it,? Clarkston coach Dan Fife said.
‘If we learn from that, it’s good for us. That’s late-season stuff, that’s pressure in a gym where you can’t hear or talk. If you’re going to beat a good team, that type of environment is going to make you better.?
The crowd fed into every basket, foul or no-call by the officials, especially down the stretch. The game was never completely decided until the last minute-and-a-half of play.
Tied at 65 apiece, Devonte Pryor made layups on two consecutive Huskies? possessions to put Northern on top 69-65 with 1:15 remaining.
After a Clarkston timeout, Dan Owens spotted up for a three-pointer, only to have his shot blocked by Timothy Williams. A scramble on the floor ensued and the Huskies came up with the ball, forcing Oliver Kupe to foul Pryor and put him on the line with 39.5 seconds remaining. Northern took it from there, going 6/6 from the line, the last two coming after a Kevin Badgley layin.
‘We had the canines out there, the Wolves and the Huskies and I bet you this, no one in the stands was disappointed,? said Northern coach Robert Rogers.
‘He (Dan Fife) threw some things at us that we hadn’t seen before and we’re trying to play chess matches too. So we went against the grain earlier, doing things we don’t normally do.?
‘What a great game,? Rogers exclaimed.
‘Just two great teams with two great traditions and two above-average coaches having fun.?
‘We almost threw the book at them. At one point I felt like Boise State, I threw everything at them I could, I went as deep on my bench as I wanted and the kids responded,? he added.
After he scored seven points in the first half, Rogers demanded better play out of Pryor.
‘I was in his face and in his ear and he accepted the positive criticism and he responded,? Rogers said.
Pryor left the gym with one of his career highs, tied for a game-high 20 points. Four of Northern’s senior starters combined for all but three of the team’s points. Williams had 19 points, Bryan Smothers scored 16 and Martell Webb had 17.
Owens also scored 20, Badgley had five rebounds and 12 points, Bren Bergquist had 10 points and 10 rebounds, and Kupe had 8 points for Clarkston.
The Wolves led by as many as nine points early in the fourth quarter before Northern made it’s run.
‘You know they’re going to make runs at you and you can never feel comfortable until the final buzzer and you’ve got to handle it. It’s not something we haven’t talked to the kids about, but I don’t that young kids know until you get into that type of situation,? Fife said.
‘One of the things on my board was, ‘Don’t let one mistake turn into two.? They have a way of doing that to you,? Fife said.
The two meet again on Feb. 27 at Clarkston in the last week of the season, which is likely to be a match for OAA I supremacy. Look for the results of Clarkston’s game against Birmingham Groves on Jan. 16 at www.clarkstonnews.com. The Wolves venture to North Farmington for their third consecutive Friday road game, starting at 7 p.m.