Saints men’s basketball falls to rival Cougars at home

It was the type of game where everything lined up: the open looks were there, the defense was there and every shot seemed to fall.

Unfortunately, it was not happening for the Saints but for the Clackamas Cougars as they defeated MHCC 67-46 on Hood’s court Wednesday night.
From the start, the Cougars, who have one of the biggest teams in the NWAACCs (only one player is under six feet tall), came out aggressively but the Saints, who run an up-tempo offense, stayed even with the Cougars to tie 18-18. But then the Cougars went on a 16-0 run, leaving the Saints trailing by 13 points heading into the second half.

“We didn’t show a lot of patience, and missed easy baskets early which shook our confidence a little,” said head coach Geoff Gibor. “At halftime I told them, there’s no 13-point basket, and that we needed to take it step by step.”

The Saints came out aggressively in the second half, getting within 10 points of the Cougars before they pulled away, sealing the deal with a shot at the buzzer to take the game 64-46. The loss, according to Gibor should serve as motivation for games to come.

“Not only do you lose pretty bad, but you lose on home court, with them knocking down a shot at the end. It should sting,” said Gibor. “In a loss, the evaluation process becomes a lot more critical than it does in a win. You learn from losses, and are better for it.”

The Saints, who are now tied for first place in the Southern Region with the Chemeketa Storm with a 9-2 record, will be tested in all three of their remaining games. On Saturday, the Saints head to Coos Bay to play the Southwestern Oregon Lakers, who coach Gibor says is supported by “a notoriously volatile crowd.” The last time the two teams met was Jan. 21, when the Saints bested the Lakers 88-76 in Gresham.

The Saints are looking at a tight race in the Southern Region as they look to clinch a playoff berth and secure their goal of winning the region. But first they must get through the Lakers Saturday before coming home to face the highly anticipated match-up against the Chemeketa Storm.

The first time the two teams met was Jan. 25 in Salem, when the Cougars displayed their aggressive defense and up-tempo offensive game, handing the Saints their first loss in the region and breaking their eight-game win streak. “We have to focus, on defense and rebounding, and all play together,” said sophomore guard Robby Rivers Thursday.

The Saints, who match up well with the Storm and their style of play, were tied 39 at the half in the first game before the Storm defeated the Saints 89-77. The Saints will need to get out on shooters early on and will also need big shot production from their team. Sophomore Rei Jensen had 23 points against the Storm in their last meeting, followed by sophomore point guard Marcus Moore who had 19 points.”We can’t get this loss (Cougars) stop us from doing what we’re doing,” said Rivers.

The Saints loss to the Cougars followed their 70-62 victory Feb. 11 on the road against the Umpqua Riverhawks where the Saints outrebounded the Riverhawks 50-27. Team scoring was led by sophomore Spencer Clayton, who posted 19 points, 13 rebounds and six assists.

The Saints will play SW Oregon on the road Saturday with a game start time of 6 p.m. before heading back to play the Chemeketa Wednesday night at home with a game time of 7:30 p.m.