By Jeremy McDonald
jeremymcdonald73@gmail.com
SALEM, Ore.– South Salem had themselves a good test Saturday afternoon following their 80-35 victory over Roseburg Friday night when they hosted Southridge of Washington on the tail-end of a back-to-back.
The Suns were disciplined, they did the little things right to be able to separate themselves from the Saxons in Southridge’s 57-47 victory. Offensively, they got separation from South Salem to hit some shots. Some of those shots came in clutch down the stretch as they turned a 35-34 deficit late in the third quarter into a 48-38 lead into the fourth quarter and the Suns never looked back.
And that was thanks, in part, to Southridge’s defense that pressed and trapped, challenging the young Saxon squad. Nothing came easy against the Suns for the Saxons as the little things ultimately decided the interstate game on this day.
“We’re getting shots. Today, if we hit our lay-ins, we win the game, we’re just not finishing. It just comes down to the little details that we focus on everyday and talk about. We got to take better with the ball, we got a little sloppy with the ball at times,” said South Salem Head Coach Adrian Lewis “Defensively, we were in it, but our rotations were a little too late. Talking. Those are things we need to learn and get better at. “
But it’s just part of the growth process for a squad who’s replacing five seniors from last year’s squad. A young team, sure, but following a strong 1-1 start to the season after the first week, the squad is confident moving forward.
“The really cool thing about this squad so far is that they’ve been really positive. They’re together, they play for each other. Yeah they’re down because we lost, but they’re still believing in each other and they’re excited for the season and I’m excited for the season. Trust the process and keep learning,” said Lewis.
Schwalm finished the game with 14 points, with four three-pointers and Brook Tate contributed another nine in the defeat. The Saxons are at Tualatin on Tuesday before hosting Sunset on Friday.
Photos By Jeremy McDonald
