Freshman helps lead Ogichidaa to victory

Ninth grader Conner Barney tossed in 28 points to lead the Fond du Lac Ogichidaa to a 77-74 victory over the South Ridge Panthers on Monday night.

The game was a back-and-forth game with both teams scratching for every point, but in the end the Ogichidaa had just enough to hold off the Panthers as Avery Misquadace joined Barney in double-digit scoring with 17 points.

"It was really a seesaw type of game," said Ogichidaa coach Earl Otis. "We got up a couple of times in double figures and they kept coming back."

At the end of the first half, Fond du Lac held a nine point, 35-26, lead. However, the Panthers were relentless in their pursuit to keep the game tight. South Ridge was led by Joey Janke with 15 points, Mason Lane with 13 and Ben Wood with 11 points.

"That first half we turned the ball over and defensively we did not get the proper help we needed," said Panthers coach Joaquim Harris. "Barney is very fast and has great moves in the paint. We started out matching him with someone taller and he was able to get to the basket. In the second half, we switched up on defense: going from zone to man and Deekon Anvid came in and matched his strength; he was able to close the distance, forcing tougher shots."

Like a game of chess, the moves made by the coaches were impressive and eventually the Panthers started attacking the rim off the dribble which led to points inside.

Jordan Brown has been the scoring leader for the Ogichidaa all season, but foul trouble kept him at nine points for the game - far below his average of just over 24 points per game. Jesus Delapaz added nine for FDL, while Jalen Paulson chipped in with eight. Uriah Aubid scored five points, and both Rolo Defoe and Simon LaPrairie had two points each.

"We normally like to coach the game with more of an uptempo pace, but we have some younger kids and we have had to slow things down to keep from turning over the ball," explained Otis. "It hurt us having Brown in foul trouble because normally he is our point guard and runs the offense."

Despite the game not always featuring a run-and-gun style, there was still plenty of half court offense that featured hard drives to the rim and, in turn, tough, physical play that resulted in nearly 50 free throws combined between the two teams.

"When you have two teams that play a slashing and attacking style there are going to be mismatches," said Harris. "I also think there is a real healthy competition between the two teams. There are family ties, and friendships between the two schools, so there are bound to be some physical plays inside. Both teams were really going at each other and playing with pride."

The Panthers also had a lot of balance on their score sheet with Jaxon Bennett scoring nine points and Kayden Palmi with seven. Tristan Johnson scored five points, Riley Kinley added three points and Weston Stroschein scored a two to join Janke and Lane in the scoring column.

Both teams now have five wins on the season with about a third of the schedule left before playoffs begin in early March.

"I like where we are right now, but we still have work to do," said Otis of his team. "We need to work on getting better on the defensive end of the floor prior to the playoffs."

Some of those sentiments were also echoed by Harris of South Ridge.

"Right now our best attribute is our bench and the ability for several different players to come into the game and give us big nights," Harris said. "There is no one key player on our team that you can stop. We are a young team and teams will look at our record and perhaps overlook us in the playoffs. I like the effort that the guys are giving and most of all, watching them play together."