RECAP: Men’s Basketball Program Takes Trip to Redmond
On Friday, January 3rd, the Men’s Basketball Program sent the varsity, junior varsity, and freshman A team down to Redmond, Oregon to face off against the 5A Redmond Panthers. The Panthers, ranked #2 in 5A, were heading into the game 8-2, looking to continue their momentum against Jesuit. The Crusaders, ranked #12 in 6A, were coming off a 3-game losing streak at the Les Schwab Invitational.
The JV and freshman A team kicked off the day with a 12:00PM game against Redmond’s JV and JV2 teams, respectively. Despite the long bus ride, the JV team looked ready from the tip-off. Their energy from the start of the game to the end led to an easy 65-48 win.
“It was tough to come off a four hour bus ride but we came out with really good energy and played together from the start,” said junior Jake Sharp.
The same story happened with the freshman A team. A 12-point game from Tyson Hoppes and an additional 12 points from Aiden Gorman helped the Freshman win 55-30 against the JV2 Panthers. Freshman Aiden Gorman spoke for his team when asked about the trip as a whole.
“Traveling with our team was a very great experience. It was a great time to bond with our teammates and get closer with them. It was especially fun to go on the road and get a win over a team that really wanted to beat us.”
Following the JV and freshman A victories was the main event, as the varsity Crusaders and the Panthers tipped off at 1:30PM.
Senior Ryan Fraser started off the scoring for Jesuit as he drained a 3-pointer, which would be the first of many for the Crusaders. Jesuit came out gunning, with the team hitting five 3-pointers in the first quarter, giving them an early 22-5 lead. The Crusaders stayed locked in the rest of the game, as many of their scoring opportunities started off with a steal and ended in either a three pointer or a fast break layup. The momentum that Jesuit had from the start of the game resulted in an 80-50 win over the Panthers.
“It felt great to drive out and get a good win after the LSI. I believe that gaining momentum in the next few games before metro starts is very important to finding success later in the season,” said junior Quinn Wicklow, when asked about the impact of this game.
As a team, Jesuit shot an impressive 57% from 3, proving why they are one of the best shooting teams in the state. On the defensive side, the Crusaders were strapping up, stealing the ball 13 times. Senior Patrick Kilfoil led all scorers with 22 points. Fraser finished the game with 16 points and Sophomore Isaac Bongen added 11.
