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NWAACC coverage from Kennewick, Wash.
Saints fall to Olympic Rangers in first round
The Advocate
In a heart-wrenching finish in round one of the NWAACCs in Kennewick, Wash., the Saints’ championship hopes in Head Coach Rob Nielson’s last season came to a quick end Thursday morning in an 80-75 loss to the Olympic Rangers.
The Saints were scheduled to play today at 8 a.m. against Columbia Basin Community College. Results were unavailable as this edition of The Advocate went to press Thursday afternoon. “It’s win or go home,” said guard Mattie Salsgiver.
The Saints, second seed out of the Southern Region, took a 37-34 lead in halftime over the Rangers in their 8 a.m. game. Freshman forward Jeremy Jones led the team with nine points on 4 of 6 shooting from the field. Freshman center Chris Weitzel led both teams in rebounding with nine at the half. A part of Nielson’s philosophy before the game was getting the ball down low against a very athletic Rangers team and that worked in their favor throughout the first half.
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“I thought we followed our game plan and played very well in the first half with a three point lead,” Nielson said. “But the biggest difference in the game was free throws,” he said. “Both teams shot poorly and struggled from the line. We lost by five points and they had five more free throws then us. That’s the game right there.”
The Saints shot a sloppy 25 percent from the free throw line in the first half (4 of 16) and also committed 10 turnovers compared to the Rangers five. The Saints held star point guard Duntae Jones to two points (1 of 11 from the field) in the first half
Five players ended the game in double figures but that wasn’t enough to get through the first round. Shooting guard Michael Wohlers led the way with 19 points, including 3 of 6 from behind the arc, and he tied for a game high with six assists. Forward Cody Mortenson ended with a double-double (13 points and 10 rebounds) in 33 minutes of action. Point guard Earl Jones chipped in with 11 points and six assists but had a season’s worst nine turnovers in the losing effort.
“Between poor free-throw shooting and turnovers, we couldn’t compete the way we wanted to,” said Wohlers. “We came out with a lot of intensity and played our game in the first half. They were just much more physical than us and that was shown during the entire game.”
The Saints shot a 38 percent from the field, hitting 27 of 71 shots.
Duntae Jones ended the game shooting 6 of 23 from the field with 15 points and six assists. The Ranger, who were tied for second in the North region, shot 27 of 82 from the field but layups in the final minutes was the deciding factor.
“We didn’t shoot well at all,” said Rangers Head Coach Billy Landram on his team’s performance. “You have to make shots and play as a team to win big ball games. We turned things around in the second half.”
The poor free-throw shooting continued in the second half and the Saints ended the game 15 of 33 from the line.
Weitzel said, “Free throws killed us. We played terribly down the stretch and that was the difference in the game.” The Rangers went on a run in the last three minutes, including a 5-0 run that helped them cruise past the Saints.
Nielson said, “It was one of those games where it came down to free throws and they got the better end of it. Plus, the Rangers are a very good team.
“I thought we played good team basketball. We just didn’t play that way the entire game,” he said.
Landram said he was very impressed with his team’s victory over the Saints.
“It was a real intense game,” said Landram. “It’s difficult playing an 8 a.m. game. We came out with a lot of confidence and it showed down the stretch. We made clutch free throws in the end and key stops on defense and that’s how you win games.”
Landram said he was satisfied with way his team defended Earl Jones on defense and explained that it was a key factor in Jones turning over the ball nine times. “We were concerned with Earl prior to the game. He’s a great ball player. Thankfully we played him really well on defense.”
After the game, Nielson was already looking ahead to Friday’s game.
“We will develop a different game plan for our next game depending on who wins,” he said earlier this week. “Obviously, if (Columbia Basin) wins we have experience with them earlier in the season.”
Columbia Basin tied for third in the East Region with a 9-5 record (16-8 overall).
The Saints split two games during the preseason against Columbia Basin in December. On Dec. 12, the Saints beat the Hawks 78-70, and then a week later lost on the road 74-70. The Hawks won their last five regular season games and have five players averaging 10 points or more per game. They are led in scoring by sophomore guard Skyler Montoya (14.17 ppg) and sophomore 6’7’’ center Ross Thoelke (12.4 ppg).
“We know we have the talent to beat the Hawks,” said point guard Earl Jones. “They have a solid team but we want to win out and finish in third place for coach Nielson in his final season.”