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48 °F Forecast | Road Cams Thursday, January 27, 2005 Today's News | Classifieds | Autos | Homes | Jobs | Tempo | Health | Community | Home Delivery SECTIONS Home Page Local News Sports Business Obituaries Life Opinion - Politics Tempo AP News Weather Classified Archives Site Map SPECIAL SECTIONS Since We Asked Outdoor Journal Menu Guide How To Guide Wellness Connection Readers' Choice Real Estate Showcase Real Estate Guide Joy Magazine Homelife Magazine Wedding Guide Passport to the Rogue Valley EXTRA Newspaper in Education Personals Movie Times TV Times E The People Volunteer Opportunities Moving to Southern Oregon? MARKETPLACE Find a Car Find a Home Find a Job Classifieds Place an ad eSouthernOregon Automotive Communities Entertainment Publications Recreation Calendar CUSTOMER SERVICE Frequent Questions Advertising Information Home Delivery Employment Contact Us Media Kit Network Affiliate Oregon Road Conditions & Cams Email Story to a Friend December 31, 2004 North finds its touch, finishes in third place By KEVIN GOFF Mail Tribune North Medford’s shots didn’t go down the night before, but the Black Tornado players didn’t let it get them down. Rediscovering its offensive patience and shooting touch, North downed Aloha 63-55 for third place Thursday in the Abby’s Holiday Classic at South Medford High. The triumph was an 180-degree turn from a disappointing, 66-51 loss to a solid Crescent Valley team on Wednesday. A night after shooting a miserable 1-for-20 from 3-point range, North was true on 8 of 12 from behind the arc and shot 23 of 37 (62 percent) overall. The Tornado (3-5) also crashed the boards and regained its defensive intensity that had been lacking. "I’m very proud of the character we showed," said North coach Tim Sam. "It’s not easy in a three-game tournament to bounce back one night after having your butts handed to you." Advertisement Ben Running continued his torrid play with 16 points on 6 of 9 shooting. The senior, who scored a career-high 27 points against Crescent Valley, accumulated 67 points over the three games and was named to the all-tournament team. "He had a heck of a tournament," said Sam. "(The win) was really a result of all of us playing as a team and not as individuals." While Running had to work for his points the previous two games, scoring on a number of offensive rebounds and loose balls, the 6-foot-4 wing had a majority of his production against Aloha in half-court sets. But, unlike the night before, Running wasn’t alone. Kyle Williamson, who also notched a career-best in points with 29 on Tuesday, scored 19 points Thursday. He found Aloha’s man-to-man defense to his liking and sank five 3-pointers. "I kept telling myself last night was a fluke," said the senior guard, who also made the all-tournament squad. "I knew (my shot) would come back. I was stepping into it more tonight. Last night, it was a little flat." Williamson found his stroke right off the bat, slashing in for a short jumper in the opening minute, then draining two 3s to key a 12-0 run to finish off the first period. Neither team missed a shot until three minutes had passed in the hot-shooting first quarter. But Aloha (2-6) went cold and watched North take a 20-8 lead after the first eight minutes. "Our intensity was huge tonight," said Williamson. "The teamwork was great, too. "Coach Sam talked about rebounding better and getting out and running. I think we were able to do that." Senior post Ian Logan snapped a seven-minute scoring drought for the Warriors to start the second period. Yet North Medford was still warming up. Running nailed a pair of free throws — he finished 4-for-4 from the line after going 1-for-6 Wednesday — and was on the finishing end of a nifty alley-oop pass from John Berger to push the lead to 13. Drew Herrera closed out the half with a no-look fastbreak pass to a streaking Mike Barry for a 36-23 lead heading into the intermission. The Tornado upped its lead to as many as 18 at one point in the second half. Herrera finished with a team-high six assists. The senior point guard has a turnover-to-assist ratio of nearly 3-1, which is the best in Sam’s four-year tenure at North, said the coach. Berger scored 11 points on 4 of 7 shooting. Ty Ryan led North Medford on the glass with six rebounds. There’s room for improvement, said Sam, but he couldn’t have been more pleased with the win heading into Southern Oregon Conference play next Friday. "We talked about five things heading into tonight," said Sam. "Defend, and do it in the half court. Rebound like heck and get out and run. "The fourth thing was play hard and then have some fun. We weren’t perfect tonight, but (the win) was really a result of all of us playing together." NORTH MEDFORD (63) — Barry 4, Herrera 3, Williamson 19, Running 16, Stanek 2, Stroh 0, Eubank 2, Berger 11, Ryan 6, Waldron 0, Theel 0, Slowey 0. Totals: 23-37 9-13 63. ALOHA (55) — Fassnidge 0, Boone 2, P. Martin 20, Jones 0, Knutson 3, C. Martin 0, Ternosky 2, Teckman 7, Logan 11, Douglas 10, Stotts 0. Totals: 20-40 10-14 55. North Medford............................20 16 19 8 — 63 Aloha...........................................8 15 18 14 — 55 3-point goals — Aloha 5 (P. Martin 1, Knutson 1, Teckman 1, Logan 1, Douglas 1), North Medford 8 (Herrera 1, Williamson 5, Berger 2). Fouled out — Running. REX PUTNAM 71, WEST SALEM 65 — Steven Vaughan scored 29 points to lead Rex Putnam to fourth place. The Kingsmen (8-2) shot 32 free throws, making 24, to pull away from a 34-all halftime tie. Cory Davis poured in 24 points to lead West Salem, which fell to 4-4. WEST SALEM (65) — Singleton 2, Davis 24, Potter 0, Huber 8, Kongslie 0, Kelly 0, Heller 0, Dunsworth 7, Whittington 4, Johnson 14, Stanton 0, Huntley 0, Farrell 6. Totals: 26 9-11 65. REX PUTNAM (71) — Zeller 0, Mendes 0, Kirkpatrick 6, Thompson 13, Tafoya 4, Rickert 0, Forell 4, McLeod 0, Vaughan 29, Mihub 0, Cuff 15. Totals: 23 24-32 71. West Salem...............................17 17 15 16 — 65 Rex Putnam...............................14 20 20 17 — 71 3-point goals — West Salem 4 (Davis 3, Huber 1), Rex Putnam 1 (Thompson 1). Fouled out — Kongslie, Davis. RED BLUFF (Calif.) 67, WILSON 55 — Tim Burch scored 15 points and Red Bluff nailed eight 3-pointers. The Spartans (6-6) used a 19-7 burst in the third quarter to erase a 33-30 halftime deficit. Evan Dunn drilled five 3-point baskets and totaled 25 points for Wilson, which finished 0-3 at the tournament to fall to 1-7 overall. RED BLUFF (67) — Valenzuela 2, Dotson 0, Helmick 9, Burch 15, Poppleton 6, Haver 8, Rameriz 1, Harris 6, Button 6, Bretzke 7, Fulks 3, Kingsley 4. Totals: 24 11-22 67. WILSON (55) — Norton 0, Hoarfrost 2, Zonoozy 2, Anderson 11, Dunn 25, White 0, Fritz 0, Hereford 2, Kenney 6, Erceg 7, New 0, Hoy 0. Totals: 23 4-6 55. Red Bluff....................................16 14 19 18 — 67 Wilson..........................................20 13 7 15 — 55 3-point goals — Red Bluff 8 (Helmick 3, Burch 3, Haver 2), Wilson 5 (Dunn 5). Reach reporter Kevin Goff at 776-4483 or e-mail [email protected] . Mail Tribune Home Local News | Sports | Business | Obituaries | Life Opinion - Politics | AP News | Archives | Site Map E Southern Oregon | Classified Copyright © 1997-2005 Mail Tribune. All rights reserved. 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