THURSTON – The No. 1-ranked Thurston boys basketball team played its home opener against the visiting Ridgeview Ravens without its star player and dealt with some “early-season jitters” in the first half, but settled in for a 59-48 victory Friday night.
Senior Nate Stiffler – 2023-24’ Midwestern League “Player of the Year,” 1st-team all-league and 2nd-team all-state – had been dealing with a finicky injury in the last week. One that caused him “soreness” and made it “hard for him to move the way he wants to” despite the evidence of nothing broken or sprained.
Coach Blaine Liberatore emphasized the need to monitor Stiffler’s mysterious injury on a day-to-day basis and bring him back cautiously to ensure he is healthy for the long run.
“We’re trying to be precautionary with it,” Liberatore said. “Knowing that our league is tough, and we have a holiday tournament down in Medford, that’s gonna be tough. So we’re just kind of going day by day, trying to not sacrifice the long run for the short.”
That didn’t slow down the momentum for the other Colts, though, and Friday’s game demonstrated that Stiffler is certainly not carrying the team. Junior Lucas LaBounty, who Liberatore says is the “hoops junkie” of the Colts, came away with 23 points – his highest-scoring game thus far. Senior Noah Blair had 13 points and 8 rebounds and Treyson Hill added 10 points. Matt Newell scored 8 points in Stiffler’s absence.
Liberatore said that’s the benefit of having a deep roster with many skilled players who can contribute. Thurston returns 10 out of 12 Colts from last year’s league championship team. With the additions of new talented freshmen like Treyson Hill, there are at least 12-13 athletes who can all play. However, playing time poses a challenge.
“It’s a blessing and a curse,” Liberatore said. “We have so many guys that it’s hard to get everyone in, but at the same time, we have a lot of options, and that is a good thing. Matt (Newell) is not usually a starter. But he’s one of our best post defenders. He’s an incredible energy guy. Rebounds the ball really well and just plays his role really well. Tonight, his role was a little bit different, and I’m super proud of him for how he stepped up in a situation that’s not normal for him. Since we have 12-13 guys that can all play, all season long, it’s going to be someone different every single night. And I thought Matt was a huge part of that tonight.”
For Liberatore, Newell’s deed summarizes the Colts team and their philosophy. The Colts have gradually adopted the University of Oregon men’s basketball team motto from coach Dana Altman: “Sometimes you, sometimes me, always us.” When recounting Newell’s actions Friday night, Liberatore says “That’s our team.”
Liberatore also praised Lucas LaBounty for his impressive performance with 23 points, highlighting his versatility in scoring from various positions.
“Hats off to Lucas LaBounty tonight; he was amazing. He definitely deserves a shout-out for carrying the scoring. Also, he scored in a bunch of different ways, which is his best weapon. He can score for three and get inside. He can pull up jumpers. He’s a special player, and we’re lucky to have a bunch of those,” Liberatore said.
The game wasn’t without its hiccups. The first half was slow-going offensively, with missed shots and it was a three-point match. It was not until the third quarter, when the Colts made a 13-point run, giving them a comfortable lead, did they settle in.
Liberatore emphasized good defense despite not scoring early, which helped them stay in the game and improve in the third quarter. But he also attributes the low scoring to “early season jitters” and trying to “work things out.”
“It might have looked like we started slow, but we were playing the defense that we wanted to,” Liberatore said. “We were getting shots at the rim, they just weren’t going in. Those shots started going in the third quarter, and our defense stayed the same. And so you got to make shots, especially shots, especially shots at the rim. And we didn’t do that the first half, but we did in the third quarter, in the home stretch.”
Next up, the Colts hit the road to Milwaukie to face the Putnam Kingsmen, who were a final-four team last year.
