Headed into last weekend’s regular season finale, the Juneau-Douglas High School boys basketball team had lost five of their six Southeast Conference games this season.
Regardless of his team’s conference record, JDHS head coach Robert Casperson liked his team’s chances against the Thunder Mountain Falcons in the Thunderdome Friday and Saturday.
“When it comes to believing in my team – of course, I always believe in them,” he said. “These guys are working hard. We’re trying different things with our game plans and they are executing.”
After a convincing 58-40 win Saturday over Thunder Mountain, he’s likely not alone in his assessment of the reigning state champions.
The Falcons (13-9, 4-4 SE) were outscored by 20 points in the second half and the Crimson Bears (13-9, 3-5 SE) ran away with the game in the third quarter before a lively Thunderdome crowd.
Erik Kelly scored a game-high 18 points for the Crimson Bears. Chase Saviers and Noah Reishus-O’Brien, two of the nine seniors recognized pre-game by the Falcons, scored 12 apiece.
Thunder Mountain’s two losses on the weekend make the Ketchikan Kings the No. 1 seed in the 4A Region V basketball tournament this week. JDHS and TMHS will square off for the third time in five days Tuesday night at 8:15 p.m. in the first round of the double-elimination tournament.
“The last time we played them, Chase had 40 and Noah had 27,” JDHS guard Kolby Hoover said of the Feb. 3-4 series between the two schools. “We were just trying to shut those two guys down and make the other guys make plays. It seemed to work.”
Hoover scored 13 points but prevented many more thanks to his shutdown defense on Reishus O’Brien, who scored 12 points in Saturday’s contest.
“He’s a 6-4 guard with 6-7 arms, his wingspan is ridiculous and that’s tough for guys to go against,” Casperson said of Hoover.
Both teams pushed the ball in the first quarter but missed everything they threw at the rim. The Crimson Bears missed seven of their first nine shots, and the Falcons nine of their first 10.
Thunder Mountain took a 14-13 lead two minutes into the second quarter. Reishus-O’Brien scored six straight points as JDHS turned the ball over on back-to-back possessions thanks to a well-executed half-court trap. After leading by as many as eight, the Falcons held a 25-23 edge at halftime.
Hoover tied the game on his first shot of the third quarter before Kelly’s offense and Bryce Swofford’s defense took Thunder Mountain out of the game. The Crimson Bears went on a 16-3 run in the third quarter and led 41-31 to start the fourth.
The visiting team’s defense didn’t let up in the fourth quarter, and Thunder Mountain played eight or more points behind for the rest of the game.
Hoover is ready to begin the regional tournament: “With three wins in the region straight – I’m feeling pretty good about our chances.”
Pusich’s 19-point effort carries JDHS over Thunder Mountain
For the second straight night, the Thunder Mountain girls basketball team used their defense to keep them in the game, but sophomore guard Caitlin Pusich came alive in the third quarter and helped Juneau-Douglas to a 48-35 win.
Pusich scored a game-high 19 points — including eight in the third quarter — while Alyxn Bohulano and Georgia Robinson added nine and seven respectively.
The Falcons one-two punch of Nina Fenumiai and Kyra Jenkens-Hayes scored 21 combined points while anchoring defense that furnished six first-half turnovers.
The Thunder Mountain (2-18, 0-8 SE) defense frustrated the Crimson Bears (18-4, 7-1 SE) early on, but the Falcons scored just four points in the opening quarter.
The Falcons found some offense in the second quarter at the free throw line, luring JDHS into making fouls with aggressive cuts to the basket. TMHS shot 11 free throws in the second quarter to JDHS’ four.
With the game still up for grabs after halftime, Pusich showed why she’s an elite scorer. The sophomore shooting guard used her height and speed advantage to put up eight points in just over a minute in the third frame. The Falcons twice fouled Pusich on made 2-point attempts — both bank shots.
“[Coach] Knight always gets mad at me because I don’t go for the backboard shots and just do floaters, so I’ve been trying to work on doing that.”
Kyra Jenkens-Hayes scored eight of the Falcons’ 13 total third quarter points and JDHS led 32-26 after three quarters.
Thunder Mountain was over the foul limit before the fourth quarter started, helping JDHS seal their victory at the free-throw line.
The 4A girls Region V basketball tournament kicks off Tuesday at 6:30 p.m. TMHS face Ketchikan in the opening round.
Contact sports reporter Nolin Ainsworth at 523-2272 or nolin.ainsworth@juneauempire.com.
