BOYS BASKETBALL
RECAPS
■ Cottage Grove won its regular-season finale against North Bend 59-58 on Tuesday, then lost against No. 8 Newport in the 4A state play-in game, 70-41.
■ No. 10 Creswell upset No. 7-seeded Riverside 66-59 on the road last weekend and advanced to the state quarters. Senior Tyler Whitson recorded a double-double with 24 points and 15 rebounds. Sophomore Mason Schartz contributed 15 rebounds.
■ No. 2 Pleasant Hill dominated its first round of 3A state playoffs against the No. 15 Scio Loggers 70-35 on Saturday. Riley Smith carried the Billies with 19 points, Gavin Inglish had 17 points and Landen Melvin scored 13.
■ Springfield lost 74-61 to North Eugene on Tuesday and then lost its last game of the season 76-58 on Friday. The Millers close out their season with an 0-23 record.
■ Thurston went undefeated in the Midwestern League last weekend. They beat Churchill 50-39 and then Ashland 72-62. Against the Lancers, Noah Blair led with 14 points and Lucas LaBounty had 10. LaBounty had 31 points against the Grizzlies.
GIRLS BASKETBALL
RECAPS
■ Cottage Grove lost its season finale against North Bend 53-39. Makya Alsup led the Lions with 12 points and 5 rebounds. No. 21 Cottage Grove ends its season with a 7-12 overall record and an 0-12 record in the Sky-Em league.
■ No. 12 Creswell lost in the first round of the 3A state playoffs to No. 5-seeded Jefferson on Friday 57-42. Sophomore Mila Nguyen led the Bulldogs with 15 points. “Unfortunately, no one wants to end the season with a loss,” coach Tyler Hollingsworth said. “I’m incredibly grateful to the girls for allowing me to be part of the journey. I couldn’t be prouder of this group and the growth they’ve shown throughout the season. They brought home the school’s first league title in 11 years and made it back to the state tournament, even after graduating three starters and our two leading scorers.”
■ No. 11-seeded Burns upset No. 6 Pleasant Hill on the Billies’ home court last Friday, 62-58. “Though the result against Burns was not what we’d hoped for, I am as proud as I’ve ever been of this group of players,” coach Paxton Miller said.
■ Springfield beat North Eugene on Tuesday 52-40. Sailor Hall led with 16 points and 6 rebounds. Iyahna Woodard followed her and recorded 10 points and 5 rebounds.
■ Thurston closed out the Midwestern League 6-6 and went 2-0 last week. They beat Churchill 60-29 and then dominated Ashland 52-38.
BOYS BASKETBALL AND GIRLS BASKETBALL
PREVIEWS
3A BOYS
#10 CRESWELL (17-9) vs #2 PLEASANT HILL (24-3)
■ Tipping off: The Bulldogs and the Billies face off for a third time his season. This time, in the competitive postseason state championship. The Bulldogs recently shocked fans when they upset No. 7 seed Riverside on the road last weekend. In the midst of the postseason, Tyler Whitson, Mason Schartz, and Luke Bailey must have turned things up a notch or two. Meanwhile, the Billies skated past their first opponent, No. 15 seeded Scio Loggers. However, despite the Bulldogs’ new zest, Gavin Inglish, Landen Melvin, and Riley Smith won’t give up their team’s state placer so easily.
5A BOYS & GIRLS
#2 THURSTON COLTS & #6 SPRINGFIELD MILLERS
■ Tipping off: The Thurston boys team went undefeated in the Midwestern League last week at 12-0. The 5A rankings are still settling, but Thurston has a first-round home game with a likely No. 2 seed. The Springfield girls team will also earn a first-round home game, likely staying at the No. 6 seed.
