The Wakefield Trojan boys’ basketball team wrapped up its season in the C2-4 NSAA Sub-District basketball tournament, with a loss in the sub-district finals game against the Howells-Dodge Jaguars.
The number 1 seeded Jaguars started out strong against the Trojans, 21-13 in the first quarter and 21-9 in the second, to lead the Trojans into the halftime break 42-27. The Trojans rebounded a bit in the third, gaining five points against the Jaguar total, 16-11, and the Jaguars took the fourth quarter, 15-13 to seal the loss for the Trojans, 68-51.
With an 18-7 record, the Trojans finished their season of play.
Leading the Trojan’s scoring for the Howells-Dodge game was Cade Johnson with 21 points from five field goals, two three point goals and five of six free throws. Eliseo Sarmiento posted 13 points, Hunter Schultz marked 11 for the team, Armando Villa had six points and Ryan Anderson and Matt Ladely each scored two points.
Johnson pulled down 13 rebounds for the team, had three assists and one steal to lead the team’s defense as well. Armando Villa, Hunter Schultz and Ryan Anderson were all credited two rebounds and Johnathan Birkely, Eliseo Sarmiento, Anthony Valenzuela and Isiah Villa each had one.
Vs. Wisner-Pilger
The Wakefield Trojans traveled to Wisner-Pilger to take on the Gators in “The Swamp” on February 22, clinching a first-round sub-district win over the home team, 57-55.
The game came down to the final seconds as Eliseo Sarmiento drained a three-point goal to give the Trojans the lead at the buzzer. The teams battled pretty evenly throughout the game – Wisner taking a lead in the first, 15-12, then the Trojans battling back, 20-13, in the second to lead the Gators into the haltime break, 32-28.
The third quarter score was within one point, adding one to the Trojan lead, 11-10, for a 43-38 ballgame into the final quarter. The Gators actually won the fourth quarter in scoring, 17-14, but with their early lead, the Trojans were able to steal the game 57-55 at the final buzzer.
The Trojans were back in normal shooting form for the Gator game, posting a 51 percent field goal percentage and a 62 percent effective once the three throws were added in. The team outscore the Gators, but shot almost half as many times. The Trojans went 12/21 from the field, and the Gators shot 38 times, making 17 two-point goals.
Nine three-point goals went in for the Trojans, almost 50 percent, and the Gators only sunk four from outside the big line. Defensive rebounds and assists went to the Trojans, but also did the turnovers, which kept the game close.
The Trojan five-man starter team played the entire game with Cade Johnson leading the team’s scoring by just one point over Eliseo Sarmiento. Johnson marked 19 points from nine field goals and one free throw, and Sarmiento had six field goals, four three-point goals and two free throws.
Armando Villa posted nine points, Johnathan Birkely marked eight and Ryan Anderson was credited with three points.
Johnson had nine rebounds, four assists and one steal to lead the team’s other half of the stat sheet. Villa marked seven rebounds, three assists, one steal and one block. Johnathan Birkley had five rebounds and two steals, Ryan Anderson had two rebounds and three assists and Eliseo Sarmiento marked two rebounds.
More pictures from the Sub-District final against Howells-Dodge can be found on page 5 of this edition of the Republican.
More pictures from this game can be found in the following gallery: https://paperandink.smugmug.co...