Clams Take Three of Four in Basketball Doubleheader
BY JAMES GUTSCH
Evergreen Women v. Northwest Christian University
The last time the Evergreen Women played on their home floor, they fell in a double-overtime heartbreaker to the 20th-ranked Oregon Institute of Technology. They weren’t going to let it happen again. Instead, the Geoducks produced one of the most dominating wins in program history, mopping the floor with the Northwest Beacons to the tune of 74-44 on Friday night.
Sammi Clark scored 13 points, while Jessica Denmon added 10 and grabbed 11 rebounds. The Geoducks led from start to finish. Turnovers proved to be a deciding factor in the win, as Evergreen coughed it up just 9 times leading to 3 points for the Beacons; who turned it over 23 times which the Geoducks converted into 28 points. Despite the disparity in play, both teams played fairly physical basketball, which culminated in a hit on a fast break with about two minutes left that would have made Richard Sherman proud.
Once again the local taco truck was parked at the Recreation Center’s front entrance. Evergreen’s own student comedy group, Generation Friends, performed during halftime. They invited members of the audience to participate in basketball-related games, and there were prizes involved.
Evergreen Men v. Northwest Christian University
The Evergreen men’s team had a tough act to follow after a dominating performance by the women’s team, and they almost walked out with a win. Unfortunately, they were unable to complete the late rally and lost 73-78 on Friday night.
The Geoducks were a little sluggish coming out of the gate and were held to 20 points at the half, trailing by 11. After halftime, they managed to trade baskets with the Beacons and were still down by 11 with 1:33 left on the clock. Evergreen then got hot from deep as Frankie Johnson hit two threes and Cody Peters added another to complete a 9-1 run that cut the Beacons lead to 68-71 with a little over a minute left. The Geoducks pulled within 3 points again with 20 seconds left on a layup by Dre Taylor, but couldn’t get any closer before eventually succumbing. Johnson led the team with 20 points after going scoreless in the first half. Marc Taylor chipped in 17 and Dre Taylor finished with 16 for the Geoducks, who have lost three straight.
Evergreen Women v. Corban University
For the annual Cancer Awareness Night, the Evergreen G
eoducks ditched their traditional green warm-up shirts for pink shirts to spread cancer awareness. The Geoducks delivered their second impressive win in as many nights with a 65-48 victory over the Corban Warriors.
Evergreen shot an ugly 27 percent from the field during the first half and only managed 17 points. A different basketball came out of the locker room after halftime, and this one came out charging. Trailing 22-27 with 15 minutes left in the second ha
lf, Brittany Gray hit a pair of free throws, sparking a 15-2 run that had Evergreen up 37-29 with a little less than 12 minutes left. Corban couldn’t muster a counterattack, and a jumper by Gray ballooned the lead to 16 with three minutes left.
Four Geoducks reached double-digit scoring in a balanced attack that really brought the heat in the second half, outscoring the Warriors 48-25. Jessica Denmon had 12 points and 10 rebounds for her second double-double of the weekend. Evergreen shot 48 percent from the field in the second half and held a sizeable advantage at the charity stripe, finishing 18-23, while Corban made just 6 free throws on 8
attempts. The Geoducks improved to 10-8 with the victory.
Evergreen Men v. Corban University
Looking to snap a three-game skid, the Evergreen men’s team also proved they can play in pink and pulled out an 81-66 victory over Corban University on Saturday night. The Geoducks maintained the lead the entire game and made the buckets when they mattered most. Evergreen saw an 11 point lead diminish to 66-60 on a Corban layup
with less than five minutes left. An upset was brewing. Unlike past ball games in which Evergreen was unable to produce in crunch time, the Geoducks delivered on this one. Three-pointers by Jordan Dam and Dre Taylor sparked a 14-0 that pushed the lead to 20 with less than a minute left before Corban got some baskets in garbage time. The Evergreen men improved to 3-15 with the win.
Geoduck basketball resumes as both the men and women take on Northwest University on Saturday, Feb. 1 at the CRC.
You must be logged in to post a comment.