Cagers handed OAA Red foe North Farmington their first loss in the season after turning on the heat in the second half of the game last Friday, 42-36.
‘We got them at home but defending your home court takes more,? said Dan Fife, Clarkston Varsity Boys Basketball long-time head coach. ‘You have to take care of home court in our league so it was a good win. It was a character win for us.?
The Raiders took the lead with three points – off a basket and free throw but it didn’t take long for senior Nick Owens to shoot a 3-point shot to tie the game.
A pair of baskets from senior Michael Nicholson put the Wolves into the lead. They held on to it until the end of the first half, when North Farmington tied the score at 22 points.
Junior Andrew Myers opened the third quarter with a basket and North Farmington’s attempt from Jacob Joubert hit the rim and back into the court.
Owens distanced the lead more with five points made from a basket and a field goal with assists from Press Kampe and Jonah Newblatt. They finished the quarter with a 33-24 lead.
‘Coming into the second we did a really good job,? said Fife. ‘We were getting shots, getting the lead and held onto it. I was happy.?
Fife added a lot of players contributed during the game including Newblatt, Kampe, Alex Trim, Merrick Canada and Dayton Wallis.
‘Wallis came in and did a great job,? he said. ‘Press came in with no minutes in the second half. Jonah made a big pass to owens for three. Nicholson was good tonight. We kept him out of foul trouble. He made some shots. I was just impressed by our kids character. It is still early in the season but I thought we learned a lot tonight.
They opened the week with a 74-47 win over Rochester Adams, Jan. 14. Owens scored 24 points and Myers added 20 points and had 12 assists.
The Wolves beat Pontiac on Monday, 58-26 to put the boys 7-1. Owens led the team with 14 points while scoring four 3-pointers. Myers added 11 points with three field goals.
They head to Southfield-Lathrup on Friday, 5:30 p.m., before they host Carman-Ainsworth on Monday and head to Bloomfield Hills on Tuesday.
‘We have three games,? Fife said. ‘I don’t care where you are going to if you are going in with a win – it is a lot easier to go into next game with a win.?