Document text
Phoenix boys fall after taking big lead PHOENIX � The Phoenix boys basketball team played about as well as a team could play for one period on Friday night. The Pirates soared to a 30-8 lead after eight minutes but saw their lead slowly disintegrate and eventually turn into a 73-68 overtime defeat to North Valley. Derek Wright was the hero for the Knights as the 6-foot-3 junior forward bombed in a game-high 34 points, including six in overtime. "We had a personality change in the second half," Phoenix coach Tom Murphy said. "For one quarter, we couldn�t do anything wrong, and we were still in good shape at halftime (leading 37-28). "But they kept coming back on us and we played not to lose down the stretch." The Pirates tried three different zone defenses and a man-to-man alignment in an effort to stop Wright, but nothing worked. "We had no handle on him, obviously," Murphy said. "He�s a tough player to defend in the paint. He�d either score or get fouled." Wright converted 13 of 16 free throws. Kevin Jeffers had 23 points, Brady Rhodes 16 and Travis Brink 15 for the Pirates, who fell to 3-5 in the Skyline Conference and 9-9 overall. NORTH VALLEY (73) � Wright 34, Forbus 8, Kane 4, Pittman 4, Butterbaugh 12, Grosenbach 1, Maue 10, Parmelee 0, Phelps 0. Totals: 25 20-29 73. PHOENIX (68) � Jeffers 23, Brink 15, Murphy 1, L. Rhodes 8, Duffell 3, Rombach 2, Rhodes 16, Prewitt 0. Totals: 24-58 13-22 68. North Valley..................................... 8 20 19 14 12 � 73 Phoenix .............................................. 30 7 17 7 7 � 68 3-point goals � North Valley 3 (Forbus 2, Wright 1), Phoenix 7 (Brink 3, L. Rhodes 2, Jeffers 2). Fouled out � Duffell. Technical fouls � Jeffers. JV Score � North Valley 60, Phoenix 59. ILLINOIS VALLEY 65, HENLEY 63 � At Cave Junction, Justin Neville hit an underhand circus shot with three seconds remaining to boost Illinois Valley into a tie for first place with the Hornets in the Skyline Conference. Neville finished with a game-high 23 points. With the game tied 63-63 in the final 30 seconds, Illinois Valley (14-4, 6-2 Skyline) ran down the clock looking for the last shot. Neville launched a jumper with seven seconds left that missed and a Henley player grabbed the rebound. But IV�s Brandon Henry quickly stole the ball and fed it to Neville, who then hit the winning basket. Jesse Smith paced the Hornets (6-2 Skyline) with 19 points. HENLEY (63) � Smith 19, Stock 10, Nunez 7, Guantz 6, Frost 6, Leroy 2, Stewart 2, Gertberg 0. Totals: 20 5-8 63. ILLINOIS VALLEY (65) � Neville 23, Daniel Houston 15, Jesse Russell 15, Henry 7, Graven 5, Culver 0. Totals: 25 13-22 65. Henley ................................................ 21 15 13 14 � 63 Illinois Valley ..................................... 15 12 23 15 � 65 3-point goals � Henley 8 (Stock 3, Smith 3, Guantz 2), Illinois Valley 2 (Neville 2). Fouled out � Stock, Boshuizen. JV score � Henley 60, Illinois Valley 57. MAZAMA 59, ROGUE RIVER 42 � At Rogue River, Levell Hesia scored 20 points as Mazama overcame a 21-point night from Rogue River�s Derrick Schoner for the Skyline Conference win. The Chieftains trimmed the lead to four early in the third quarter but couldn�t sustain their run. Jason Luchterhand added 11 points for Rogue River, which fell to 1-7 in conference play. MAZAMA (59) � Hessia 20, Blank 2, Gelhardt 0, Hickel 9, Larson 6, Bocchi 3, Rhoades 9, Marr 10. Totals: 24 22-36 59. ROGUE RIVER (42) � Coma 0, Schoner 21, Perryman 0, Horn 2, Girodat 3, Branch 0, Mortenson 2, Baumann 0, Luchterhand 11, Badley 0. Totals: 17 4-7 42. Mazama.................................................16 12 13 18 � 59 Rogue River............................................10 12 7 12 � 42 3-point goals � Mazama 1 (Larson), Rogue River 3 (Luchterhand 2, Schoner 1). Fouled out � Badley, Horn. JV result � Mazama won. Mail Tribune Home | Ottaway Newspapers, Inc. | Dow Jones & Co., Inc. | Privacy | Contact Us Copyright � 2001 Mail Tribune, Inc.