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41 °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 15, 2004 Poised Crusaders march past Pirates By DON HUNT Mail Tribune The big sign on the wall read "Swat-o-matic" in reference to St. Mary’s High center Garrett Fiddler. The 6-foot-8 sophomore standout lived up to his reputation, smothering five shots during the Crusaders’ 66-50 nonconference victory over Phoenix Tuesday in the St. Mary’s gym. Fiddler did considerably more than host a block party, however. He scored a game-high 22 points on 9-of-15 shooting from the field, collected eight rebounds and brought the Crusader faithful to their feet when he powered a slam dunk through to end the game. "The big kid in the middle is quite a weapon for that team," Phoenix coach Kevin Dixon said of Fiddler. "We didn’t have an answer for him." The Pirates didn’t have an antidote for many of Fiddler’s teammates, either. Advertisement Getting good production from all five of their starters, the Crusaders — the state’s No. 2-ranked Class 2A boys team — sprinted to a 10-0 lead in the game’s first 3½ minutes. They extended their advantage to 22-8 after one period and coasted to their fourth victory in five games this season. Phoenix dropped to 4-2. "I’m surprised we won by that much — I was expecting a tougher game," said Fiddler, who has quickly blossomed into one of the state’s premier centers. "I think, overall, this was probably our best game." St. Mary’s returns four starters and 10 varsity players from last season’s team that went 19-8 and finished third at the Class 2A state tournament. Phoenix, meanwhile, returns just one starter from its 2003-2004 squad that went 22-3 at the Class 3A level and won the Skyline Conference title. The disparity in experience was clearly evident Tuesday as the Pirates repeatedly coughed the ball up. They suffered nine turnovers in the first quarter, 14 in the first half and 24 for the game. The miscues led to some easy baskets for the Crusaders, who shot 53 percent from the field for the game. "We’re going through some growing pains," said Dixon, who lost second-team all-state point guard Brett Ellis to graduation. The Pirates’ one bright light was sophomore point guard Dustin Smith, who came off the bench to bomb in four 3-point baskets and lead the Pirates with 16 points. But Smith was no match for the balanced Crusaders, who got 16 points from Richie Kaimie and eight each from brothers Austin and Colin Grant, who rained in two treys of his own. Kaimie, a 5-10 senior, had a superb all-around game with 16 points on 6-of-8 shooting from the field, four rebounds, four steals and one blocked shot. With St. Mary’s leading 38-24 at halftime, Kaimie scored the first six points of the third period on a layup, a 6-foot bank shot and another layup off a steal as the Crusaders soared to a 22-point lead, their biggest of the night. "When you’ve got Garrett (Fiddler) in the middle it opens up the perimeter for everyone else," Kaimie said. "We’re a team that has a lot of energy, and most of us have been playing together for six years, so we know where everyone’s at on the floor without even looking. "This is a fun team to play on." And a fun team to coach. Rick Jackson, who led the St. Mary’s girls last season, inherited the boys’ job when Tim Pflug stepped down last March. Jackson is putting his own stamp on the team, mixing in full-court and half-court zone traps along with man-to-man and zone defenses. But he knows he stepped into a favorable situation. "It really is a good group," said Jackson, who served as an assistant to South Medford coach Dennis Murphy from 1987-91. "They’re athletic kids who play hard, and they pick things up quickly. We just put in our half-court trap this week, and the kids did a nice job of executing it tonight." The Crusaders, who already own a win over sixth-ranked Oakland, will get their stiffest test of the season Saturday when they travel to Stayton to meet top-ranked Regis. PHOENIX (50) — Smith 16, Decuir 11, Bursk 8, Kraft 4, Joseph 4, McKinnis 3, Ritchie 3, Shepherd 1, Sander 0, Sinner 0, Ono 0, Dunganon 0. Totals: 19 6-12 50. ST. MARY’S (66) — Fiddler 19, Kaimie 16, A. Grant 8, C. Grant 8, Kulig 6, Seus 2, MacDiarmid 2, Terry 2, Greene 2, Slavgenski 1. Totals: 28 8-18 66. Phoenix...................................... 8 16 10 16 — 50 St. Mary’s...................................... 22 16 15 — 66 3-point goals — Phoenix 6 (Smith 4, McKinnis 1, Decuir 1), St. Mary’s 2 (C. Grant 2). Fouled out — Brusk. Technical fouls — Kraft (ejected) JV score — Phoenix 62, St. Mary’s 33. Reach reporter Don Hunt at 776-4469, 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. Privacy Policy | Terms & Conditions Website Feedback ADVERTISERS A D V E R T I S E R S SPECIAL SECTIONS Auto Finder Job Finder Home Finder Joy Magazine Homelife Magazine Tempo Readers' Choice Real Estate Showcase Since We Asked Outdoor Journal Moving to Southern Oregon? Volunteer Opportunities Student Loan Consolidation Conference Calls - $50/Month Home Security Systems Trunks, Footlocker, Trunk, Footlockers