The Oxford cagers seem to be caught in a five-game slump that has brought their overall record to 4-8 and their league standings to 2-4.
The Wildcats started off this past week on Jan. 23 with a 79-60 loss to the Holly Bronchos, who currently stand first in the league.
Oxford competed hard through the opening half of the game and came back into the third tied 43-43. Despite their attempts, the Cats could not overcome the league leaders. Leading in points were Joe Fedorinchik with 17 and Casey Mick with 10.
On Jan. 27, Oxford returned home to face off against Milford. This time, the Wildcats just didn’t have the strength moving into the competition.
“(Milford) played a very deliberate style of basketball and that frustrated the team,” said Head Coach Steve Laidlaw.
Oxford was down by 12 going into the fourth. The team pulled themselves up and were down by one with five minutes to go in the game, but Wildcats lost their focus allowing Milford to gain the broad lead.
High points included Ryan Stull with 18; Dave Wendt with eight; Chris Schnur with seven late in the game; and Mick, who had an overall good night, with six. Dave Reile came off the bench in the first to give the team a lift with three points.
This past Friday saw the Wildcats at home again – this time facing the Lapeer East Eagles for Winterfest.
Oxford came out strong and led East 8-3 by the end of the first. The Wildcats continued their drive into the second and led 15-8 with 7:42 on the clock. However, the team lost momentum. East pulled ahead at half time 20-22.
To show that they weren’t finished, the Cats returned to the court to tie things up 24-24 in the third. Oxford and East continued to trade the lead back and forth until the Wildcats lost their balance in the fourth.
“We had some break downs defensively that really hurt us,” said Laidlaw. “Offensively, we lost our patience and poise at times. Instead of waiting for the shots, the guys just started taking whatever shot came first.”
Proof of Oxford’s restlessness came late in a game already riddled by fouls. Even though the Cats did well on the line, going 16-25 all night, the Oxford players showed they were losing their focus by missing five free throws in a row, shots that could have brought the team ahead in the fourth. Instead, the Wildcats lost to East 43-39.
Leading the way were Dave Wendt with 11 points and Fedorinchik with nine. Brad Duggan led two of the three offensive charges for the night.
The Wildcats are home once more this Friday against Traverse City West. Coach Laidlaw hopes to see the team pull out of their losing trend and “confidence beget confidence.”
“I expect us to go out there and compete,” he stated. “We need to get back out there and get back to that winning frame of mind.”