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Bees sting Bison to snap winning streak
BY STAN MADDUX
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Atwo-game winning streak by the New Buffalo High School girls’ basketball team ended Monday, Dec. 12, at home against Bridgman.
The Bison trailing by 11 points at halftime were overpowered by the talent and size of the Bees’ players during the final two periods in losing 43-8.
Tatyanna Hill, an over six foot tall and lanky sophomore, made scoring close to the rim look easy despite her much shorter opponents working extremely hard to keep the ball out of her hands.
She finished with 21 points.
The first points of the game for the Bison (2-3) came nearly halfway through the second quarter when freshman Ava Mancini sank two free throws.
A three point shot from senior Lily Ruskowski was the first field goal for New Buffalo just before halftime.
Eventually, Bridgman started finding holes in the once air tight defense from New Buffalo by finding open shooters with quicker ball movement.
A lot of points were also scored by Bridgman on second and third chance shots primarily from Hill using her height advantage to grab offensive rebounds.
Senior Lexi Parmley scored all three second half points for New Buffalo by sinking a free throw and later nailing a short jump shot before the final buzzer.
New Buffalo also at home on December 9 cruised to a 46-8 victory over Countryside Academy.
Senior Sami Smith led all scorers with 16 points.
Jordan Bryk, who’s also a senior, contributed 12 points while Ruskowski added seven points. Head Coach Dave Kelly said one reason for the lopsided victory was excellent passing, which is something his players have worked hard on during practice. “It was good to see it happening in the game,” he said.
He also credited good ball movement and making a higher percentage of shots close to the rim along with better play on defense.
The Bison on Dec. 6 won their first game of the season at Grace Christian 35-19.
Kelly said he expected wins in both of the previous games and hopes the team improves enough as the season goes along to begin competing better against the stronger teams like Bridgman.
“We’re making progress a little at a time,” he said.
Bison lose to Eau Claire, Countryside Academy
The young boys’ basketball team at New Buffalo High School is searching for their first victory of the season but they could win the battle in the long run.
The team, which recently added another freshman, Lucas Forker, to the roster, is taking some lumps but playing well at times against more talented and experienced opponents.
The Bison (0-3) lost Tuesday. Dec. 13, at Eau Claire 8846 and Dec. 9 at home to Countryside Academy 58-41.
New Buffalo often struggled with turnovers from the speed and quickness of both teams but also seemed unfazed at times.
The Bison were also badly outrebounded in each game but had moments of hitting the glass well despite their lack of size.
Only time, perhaps, will allow the growing up head coach Nate Tripp is trying to make happen quicker for his players.
“Maybe that’s youth. I don’t know, but we can’t always use that as a scape goat that we’re young,” he said.
Against Countryside Academy, senior Landon Haskins started the scoring for the Bison by nailing a short jump shot while driving toward the rim.
However, things went sour quickly for the Bison from panicking against a pressure defense, which made slowing the game down to a more comfortable pace for them more challenging.
Countryside Academy used the fast tempo to their advantage in jumping out to a 13 point lead after the first quarter.
The lead did not change much until early in the third quarter, when the Bison started narrowing the margin beginning with a lay-up from junior Cameron Forker.
Junior Elliot Bourne followed by turning a steal into a lay-up and sinking a 10 foot jump shot after a dazzling crossover dribble.
A three point shot by freshman Sam Tripp cut the lead to nine points.
The Cougars quickly took back control of game, though, and led by as much as 21 points in the fourth quarter.
Bourne led the Bison with 17 points while Tripp and freshman James Shaw added seven points apiece.
Tripp said the play of Bourne, who was not on the varsity squad last year, was a real positive.
“Elliot doesn’t want to lose. He wants to work hard. Elliot is becoming a great leader,” he said.
He also praised a spirited Lucas Forker, who scored two points and grabbed three rebounds in just six minutes of play, for adding “a little bit of spark and energy.”
The Bison ended the first quarter against Eau Claire trailing 31-8 but nearly outscored the Beavers in the second and fourth quarters.
Shaw and Bourne led New Buffalo in scoring with 14 points and 10 points respectively.
The Bison were badly outrebounded in both games.
Tripp said the players have learned rebounding techniques like boxing out their opponents and everyone breaking toward the rim to help overcome their lack of size.
However, Tripp said he’s not always seeing the effort in rebounding and other areas of the game, particularly from some of his more veteran players.
“We got some serious things to address right now. We need our older guys to step up. Otherwise, we just need to start building for the future,” he said.
BY STAN MADDUX
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