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Oregon Road Conditions & Cams Advertisement Email Story to a Friend February 1, 2005 Ty Ryan and his North Medford boys basketball teammates hope to make a move in the second half of the Southern Oregon Conference season. They begin tonight with a home game against chief rival South Medford. Mail Tribune / Roy Musitelli One more time around Fifth-ranked and first-place South Medford visits North Medford tonight as the second half of Southern Oregon Conference boys play begins By KRIS HENRY Mail Tribune If the North Medford boys basketball team is going to make a move toward a state-playoff berth, there’s no time like the present. The Black Tornado plays host to fifth-ranked South Medford at 7 tonight to kick off the second half of the Southern Oregon Conference boys slate, and an upset of the Panthers would certainly go far toward North’s goal of a third straight trip to the playoffs. "They say just about anything can happen in a cross-town rivalry game," says North head coach Tim Sam, whose team lost 60-44 to South in the SOC opener Jan. 7. "Throw out the point spreads, throw out the rankings, it’s going to be a battle." A win tonight would allow North (6-9, 3-4 SOC) to snap a string of 10 straight losses to South, and also help offset last Friday’s 57-50 loss at Ashland, which vaulted the Grizzlies into the No. 4 spot in the conference standings ahead of the Tornado. "We have to get one of those now," North senior Kyle Williamson says of remaining games against SOC leaders South, Roseburg and Grants Pass. "We could probably get all three if we play the way we want to play, but just one of those would be huge for us." Advertisement In other SOC boys games tonight, Ashland (12-5, 4-3 SOC) plays at Crater (3-14, 1-6 SOC), Eagle Point (5-12, 0-7 SOC) at Grants Pass (11-7, 5-2 SOC) and Klamath Union (6-11, 2-5 SOC) at No. 7 Roseburg (16-1, 6-1 SOC). All games start at 7 p.m. The SOC girls basketball schedule flip-flops the aforementioned sites, with North Medford’s eighth-ranked girls team playing at South Medford High and so on. While Sam’s club may be eager for a momentum-changing win over South (14-3, 7-0 SOC), it’s not likely the Tornado will be overlooked by the Panthers, who are striving for their fourth straight conference title. "That’ll be a battle, it always is," South head coach Dennis Murphy says. "I just think they’re going to bring the best game they possibly can, and we have to bring our best game or we’re not going to like the outcome of the game." Tonight’s contest also kicks off an unforgiving finish to the season for South, with the Panthers playing five of their final seven games on the road. While that stretch run will certainly be challenging, Murphy says having predominantly home games in the first half of the schedule was pivotal for his young Panthers. "I really think that the schedule definitely has worked in our favor because we have so many young guys," says Murphy, whose lineup includes four first-year starters. "Playing at home is just easier than playing on the road. It increases your chance of success and gives you something you can build on." After suffering through some growing pains because of Kyle Singler’s late start to the season due to a thumb injury, the Panthers appear to have everything ironed out and are getting better with each game. Key to that rise, besides Singler’s SOC-high 20.6 points per game, has been the improved play of Kendall Gielow. The 6-foot-7 junior, who will be making his first appearance at North tonight since transferring last summer, has poured in 35 points over his last two games and is in a tie for 11th in SOC scoring at 11.6 points per game. "To his credit, he’s accepted his role very well and I think he’s getting more comfortable," says Murphy. "We’ve always known he’s a good player, it was just a matter of relaxing and letting the game come to him." Also stepping up in recent weeks for South has been freshman point guard Michael Harthun, who’s averaging 10.6 points and has 36 assists and only 13 turnovers through seven conference games. At North, balanced scoring has been the standard thus far as three Tornado players average double-digit points and a fourth is close. Seniors Williamson (13.6 ppg), John Berger (11.7) and Ben Running (10.3) have led the charge, with three-year starter Ty Ryan averaging 9.7 in the SOC. In the Jan. 7 meeting, the Tornado let an early lead slip away when the Panthers went on a 20-7 run in the second quarter. In the other three quarters combined, South outscored North by just three points. Sam says his team has used those three quarters, as well as a three-point home loss to then-undefeated Roseburg, as confidence builders heading into tonight’s game. Adding to the expected intensity is the fact that North’s senior-dominated lineup is down to its last chance to beat the Panthers or become the second straight senior class to not witness a varsity boys basketball win over South. "The seniors had a special meeting after practice today and I’m sure it wasn’t about what they were having for dinner tonight," says Sam. While the pressure is on North to find a way to vault past Ashland, the Grizzlies enter the second half of the SOC slate riding high. Tabbed in the preseason as the most likely SOC team to have a breakthrough season, Ashland has done little to sway that sentiment as the Grizzlies are in good position for their first playoff bid since the 1991-92 season. Besides already owning a win over North, Ashland may have a leg up on the Tornado for the league’s fourth and final playoff spot with home dates remaining against South, Roseburg and Grants Pass. The Grizzlies play at North on Feb. 22 in the SOC finale for both teams. Reach reporter Kris Henry at 776-4488, or e-mail [email protected] Mail Tribune Home | Local News | Sports | Business | Obituaries | Life | Opinion AP News | Archives | Site Map | Community | Classified Copyright © 1997-2006 Mail Tribune, Inc. All rights reserved. Privacy Policy | Terms & Conditions | Website Feedback www.bingo.com Home Security Systems Trunks, Footlocker Custom Build Computers Discount Hotel Reservations online casinos news Ashley Furniture HomeStore Send Flowers Southern Oregon Loans California Casinos GMAT Prep Windermere Van Vleet Sports Equipment Online Casino Reviews Online Bingo Entertainment Guide Online Casino Fundraisers Sudoku Online Casinos Canada Online Pharmacy Advertisement s