Montague boys basketball takes season-ending defeat to Oakridge in districts
WHITEHALL — It wasn't difficult to divine Montague's game plan early in Monday's pre-district tilt against Oakridge; the Wildcats were going to drive to the basket at all costs and take the fight to the Eagles.
The plan largely worked for a half, and Montague trailed by just five points at the break. Eventually, though, the Oakridge offense came alive, and the Wildcats couldn't keep up in a 57-41 defeat.
Montague (4-19) certainly looked like a team ready to do whatever it took to win in the first quarter. Jack Degen, one of the smaller Wildcat players, was willing to put it on the line for two big offensive rebounds in the early going (he later got into foul trouble). Logan Hansen and Oakridge's Evan Miller ended up on the floor as time expired in the first quarter, wrestling for a loose ball.
"A lot of credit to Oakridge," Montague coach Nick Thaler said.
"They're a nice team. They've got five veteran players. We thought that
if we wanted to be competitive in this contest, we had to make the
game a little messy and play physical. In these district
contests, officials let you play a little bit more.
"I thought we played some of our
best basketball this season (in the first quarter), which is what you want to see
now."
Montague still trailed 13-7 at the first quarter break, but continued to keep it close through the first half despite not having much luck on offense. Riley Mulder, who led the team with 13 points, was an offensive bright spot early, scoring with toughness.
Out of halftime, Oakridge began to assert itself, especially with a good zone defense that forced Montague into some poor decisions and turnovers. The Eagles then converted a lot of those chances into easy layups on the other end. Montague played with effort in getting back on defense, but the Eagles were just too quick.
"There were a couple times down in transition where it was 2-on-1," Thaler said. "We would get back defensively, but they would miss it, get
the rebound and put it back in. That makes it tough."
Montague's Jack Degen (center) attacks the basket during Monday's pre-district game against Oakridge. Montague lost, 57-41.
Montague did get as close as four points early in the third quarter, but those fast-paced baskets, as well as a game-high 20 points from Eagles' guard Peyton Ruel, allowed Oakridge to grab control of the game. Within a few minutes of game time, that four-point lead stretched to 14, and the Wildcats, not a potent offensive team all season, just couldn't come back.
The Wildcats weren't blessed with veteran ballhandlers this year, and that was an issue for much of the second half when the Eagles went to a zone defense. That forced Montague into decisions that at times were rushed or not made with confidence.
"We knew that we had to
play, probably, one of our perfect games of the season in order to beat these guys," Thaler said. "On the season, we're shooting 32-35 percent...You've just got to make good
decisions and move the ball. I think if the ball gets too quiet (against a zone), it
makes it easy for them to kind of sit and guard spots versus guarding
people."
Montague's Cole Herremans has his shot contested by Oakridge's Chase Dutton during Monday's pre-district game at Whitehall. The Eagles won, 57-41.
Montague will likely look much different stylistically when next season tips off, as the team will lose a lot of its size but bring in a promising group of guards from a JV team that had its share of success. However, with the emotions of a season-ending defeat, the focus was on five graduating Wildcats whom Thaler said have "poured blood, sweat and tears into this program since they were in fourth or fifth grade" - Degen, Mulder, Kellan Francis, Braylen VanSickle and Cortland Schneider, the latter of whom unfortunately was out due to injury. While the season was surely disappointing for those seniors, that never makes it easier when it ends.
"Unfortunately, that's the finality of high school
sports," Thaler said. "It's tough. We had a nice long talk and a nice long
cry in there, and it's just about being a family and loving each other
and being there for them when they need it the most."
