PLEASANT HILL – In their first showdown of the season, Class 3A powerhouses Pleasant Hill and Creswell showed up at less than full strength.
The No. 4-ranked Billies were without all-state senior guard Landen Melvin and standout freshman forward Cole Jackson, who were both out with a flu bug. Likewise, the visiting Bulldogs, ranked No. 7, had several players battling illness, although everyone played.
But even without two of its top players, Pleasant Hill put together one of its best efforts of the season, jumping out to a lead and holding on for a 60-54 victory over its crosstown rival on Tuesday, Jan. 27.
“We were down 12-3 early because they hit four 3s in the first two minutes,” Creswell coach Jesse Thomas said. “Landen’s youngest brother (Luke) hit four in the first half and Noah Johnson hit three – they had eight or nine 3s in the first half and we were 1-for-10. We were constantly trying to fight back. They shot it really well and moved the ball really well.
“They had a lot of possessions where they ran the clock down and scored at the end of the shot clock.”
Luke Bailey had his second straight 20-point effort for Creswell, with 20 points and 11 rebounds, but he didn’t get a whole lot of help until late in the game, when Ace Arnold nailed three straight 3-pointers to pull the Bulldogs within four points. Junior team captain Mason Schartz had a team-high 12 rebounds but was limited to 8 points, going 3-for-5 from the floor.
Thomas said when an opponent plays as well as the Billies played last Tuesday night, all you can do is tip your hat to them.
“Their ball movement tonight, I haven’t seen it look that good since their game against Marist in the I-5 Tournament,” Thomas said. “It was almost flawless. I don’t think they forced a shot all night. They took the right shot at the right time with the right guy, and they worked hard to make sure they got a good shot. That’s hard to stop. If you get good shots, and you run an offense like that, the only defense you have is hoping they miss.
“They did what they had to do defensively, they rebounded pretty well, and they forced us out of our game plan.
“We were climbing uphill the whole way. We played hard. Sometimes we’d have them stopped, then they would score right as the shot clock went off. It was just that kind of night. But credit to them. They did what they needed to do.
“Fortunately, like I told our guys, we get a chance to play them again at our place in a couple of weeks (on Feb. 13). Hopefully, both teams will be healthy and we’ll see a different result next time.”
