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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 29, 2004 Kyle Williamson (4) of North Medford drives the baseline in the second quarter of the Black Tornado�s 90-76 victory over Wilson Tuesday. Williamson scored a career-high 29 points in the first-round game of the Abby�s Holiday Basketball Classic at North. Mail Tribune / Andrew Mariman Williamson’s big night leaves Wilson queasy By KEVIN GOFF Mail Tribune Kyle Williamson wasn’t feeling himself heading into Tuesday’s first-round game of the Abby’s Holiday Basketball Classic. The senior guard suffered from a bad cold and struggled to shake a listless feeling as game time approached. The perfect recipe for well being, apparently, came in 3s. Williamson sank five 3-pointers and poured in a career-high 29 points to help the North Medford boys halt a four-game losing streak with a 90-76 victory over Wilson in the North Gym. Advertisement "I don’t know what happened," said Williamson of his hot shooting. "I don’t feel real well. It would be nice if whatever happened keeps happening. We were definitely tired of losing." Ben Running also had a career night with 24 points and was a major spark in the Black Tornado’s 57-point second half. "I mean, 1-4 is not what we are used to," said Running, who added six assists and nine rebounds. "We talked a lot this week about playing a full 32 minutes. I think we came out (tonight) and put it all together." The Tornado looks to put together back-to-back wins for the first time this season when it plays a semifinal game tonight at 6 against Crescent Valley at South Medford High. The Raiders took out Rex Putnam, 68-53, at the North High gym. North had struggled so badly entering Tuesday’s game that coach Tim Sam held a powwow with the team to reassess the situation. "No doubt about it, tonight was the most complete effort we’ve given," said Sam, whose team shot 11-for-15 from the field in a 32-point fourth quarter. "The enthusiasm level ... everything was a lot higher out there. "The end result was the reward for the effort they showed out there." But Wilson (1-5), the first team from the Portland Interscholastic League to play in the Abby’s tournament, made sure the long-awaited win wasn’t going to come easy. Senior wing Ian Anderson lit up the North defense for 33 points, and shooting guard Evan Dunn drained seven 3s to keep things close until the final period. "Boy, Anderson was a handful," said Sam. "There wasn’t much we could do to stop him." The 6-foot-4 Anderson scored 15 points in the first half — hitting shot after shot from different spots against North’s man defense — and the Trojans walked off at the half with a 35-33 lead. North Medford used its halftime break to refocus on defense. "We knew we didn’t have a chance if (Wilson) kept shooting at that level," said Sam of the Trojans’ 14-of-22 effort from the field. "We weren’t keeping that cushion in front of (Anderson). "I felt like we defended much better in the second half." The Tornado (2-4) scored two quick buckets to regain the lead at the start of the third quarter, but Anderson and Dunn stayed hot to put Wilson back on top, 50-48, with 2 minutes left in the quarter. Running, however, was just getting warmed up. The senior drove into the teeth of the Trojan defense and muscled in a spinning layup to even the game. Ty Ryan, Williamson and Drew Herrera followed with fastbreak baskets and Running put the finishing touches on a 58-53 advantage with a three-point play. Herrera started the final quarter with a pair of 3s to offset another Anderson score, and Running put North up 72-62 with six of the next eight Tornado points. Wilson crept to within 72-66 midway through the fourth, but North went on an 18-6 run that was capped by Williamson’s final trifecta with 15 seconds to play. Herrera assisted on nine of his team’s 34 baskets as North Medford shot 60 percent from the floor. Tornado senior guard John Berger added 13 points and Ryan finished with 11. WILSON (76) — Anderson 33, Dunn 27, Hoarfrost 3, White 3, Hereford 2, Kenney 2, Erceg 5, Hoy 1, Norton 0, Fritz 0, New 0. Totals: 28-47 11-19 76. NORTH MEDFORD (90) — Barry 3, Herrera 9, Williamson 29, Running 24, Stanek 0, E. Stroh 1, Eubank 0, Berger 13, Ryan 11, Waldron 0, Slowey 0, Theel 0. Totals: 34-57 13-21 90. Wilson........................................13 22 18 23 — 76 North Medford..........................14 19 25 32 — 90 3-point goals — Wilson 9-17 (Dunn 7, Anderson 1, Hoarfrost 1), North Medford 9-18 (Williamson 5, Herrera 2, Barry 1, Berger 1). CRESCENT VALLEY 68, REX PUTNAM 53 — Michael Golden scored 22 points and Brett Casey added 20 as Crescent Valley notched a first-round win. The Raiders (5-1) held Rex Putnam to 32 percent (19 of 59) shooting from the field to advance to the semifinals. Steven Vaughan led Putnam (6-2) with 14 points. REX PUTNAM (53) — Zeller 10, Mendes 0, Kirkpatrick 2, Thompson 2, Tafoya 5, Rickert 3, Forell 2, McLeod 2, Vaughan 14, Mihub 4, LeBaron 5, Cuff 4. Totals: 19-59 10-12 53. CRESCENT VALLEY (68) — Casey 20, Kelly 11, Blaustein 2, Rice 0, Kullowatz 7, Golden 22, Kolb 0, Peterson 6. Totals: 28-58 8-11 68. Rex Putnam...............................15 12 10 16 — 53 Crescent Valley.........................17 17 14 20 — 68 3-point goals — Rex Putnam 5-18 (Zeller 2, Tafoya 1, Rickert 1, LeBaron 1), Crescent Valley 4-18 (Casey 1, Kelly 1, Golden 1, Kullowatz 1). Technical foul — Thompson. 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. 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