Raider boys win two of three

The Raiders won two of three basketball games last week to put them in fourth place in the Central Washington North standings, with a 6-3 league win-loss record and a 9-6 record overall.

The wins came at Oroville and Bridgeport. Liberty Bell defeated the Raiders to tie the season series at one apiece.

“We didn’t quite perform like we wanted to this week, but we battled in a lot of ways,” Head Coach Matt Simpson said of the Raiders’ performance on the road last week.

At Oroville Jan. 20, the Raiders defeated the lowly Hornets with ease. LR jumped ahead early and continued on a hot streak in the second quarter with 27 points. In the second half, the Raiders offense slowed but the lead was enough to get the 71-55 win. LR made four of 20 from beyond the 3 pt arc. Chance Garvin led the team with 25 points.

At Liberty Bell Thursday, the Mt. Lions decided not to roll over and let the Raiders take the season series. The game stayed close with the score being knotted up at 14 at halftime. LR’s offense was sluggish in the second quarter, scoring only four points for the period. The sluggishness continued into the third quarter as the Mt. Lions pulled ahead by four points.

In the fourth, both squads’ offenses came alive and put up good numbers. The Raiders outscored the Mt. Lions for the quarter, closing the gap to two points, but at the end the Mt. Lions kept the victory, 46-44.

LR looked to rebound against the lowly Mustangs at Bridgeport, but Bridgeport also had other plans, taking the lead early in the first quarter and holding on to it until the fourth.

LR’s offense did not come alive until the fourth when they scored 22 points. At the end, another nail biter for the Raider fans turned in their favor as the Raiders came home with the win 49-47.

Simpson praised both Louies in the come-from-behind win.

“Jesse hit the go-ahead shot after battling back from 14 down in the second half,” Simpson said, “and Jackson led with ball handling and free throws that were needed to seal the game.”

Last night, the Raiders travelled to Manson to take on the last-place Trojans. Tomorrow at Gailord Nelson Gym in Coulee Dam the Raiders finish the season series with Oroville, starting at 7:30 p.m. Then on Friday the Raiders host the Tonasket Tigers at 7:30 p.m. Tonasket is contending with Oroville for the last spot into Districts. LR defeated Tonasket at Tonasket 66-48.

“We will be ready to compete and play hard, and play for the post season,” Simpson said.

At Oroville

1 2 3 4 Final

Oroville 9 18 14 14 58

LR 16 27 15 13 71

Stats vs Oroville

Garvin 25 points 3 steals, Redstar 13, Jesse Louie 12 points 6 rebounds, Palmer 8 points 11 rebounds, Jackson Louie 7, Picard 6, Nicholson 1

At Liberty Bell

1 2 3 4 Final

LR 10 4 11 19 44

LB 6 8 14 18 46

Stats vs Liberty Bell

Picard 12, Palmer 11 points 8 rebounds, Garvin 9 points 5 rebounds, Jesse Louie 0, Nault 2 points 5 rebounds, Nicholson 2, Rosenbaum 2, Jackson Louie 6 points 6 steals

At Bridgeport

1 2 3 4 Final

LR 6 11 10 22 49

Bridge. 14 6 14 13 47

Stats vs Bridgeport

Palmer 16 points 11 rebounds, Jackson Louie 11 points 9 rebounds, Rosenbaum 8, Jesse Louie 6 points 6 rebounds, Picard 3, Nicholson 2, Redstar 2, Nault 1,