The Juneau-Douglas High School: Yadaa.at Kalé boys varsity basketball team played their first game of the season Wednesday in the Tarkanian Classic at Las Vegas.
Playing at Desert Pines High School, the Crimson Bears boys fell to the South Summit High School Wildcats of Kamas, Utah, 57-36.
“Our defense wasn’t where it needed to be against a scrappy and physical opponent today,” JDHS head coach Robert Casperson. “We’ll try to make the adjustment through film study and get ready for tomorrow.”
JDHS trailed 16-10 after one quarter, with senior Pedrin Saceda-Hurt and junior Brandon Casperson notching shots past the arc and senior Ahmir Parker and junior Tyler Frisby adding a basket apiece.
Saceda-Hurt had another deep shot in the second quarter, and Casperson added two buckets and a free throw to stay within eight points at the half, 26-18.
“We are going to have to be more disciplined offensively and make sure we have a better balance on our shot selection,” coach Casperson said. “Defensively, we were often late on rotations so we gave up open shots or fouled.”
The Juneau-Douglas High School: Yadaa.at Kalé Crimson Bears boys basketball team pose at In-N-Out Burger upon their arrival in Las Vegas for the Tarkanian Classic Tournament. (Photo courtesy JDHS Crimson Bears)
An 18-point third quarter by the Wildcats and just a basket apiece from JDHS juniors Elias Dybdahl and Damian Efergan and a free throw by Casperson put the game in Summit’s control 44-23.
“We came out cold in the third quarter and that’s when we fell behind,” the coach said.
JDHS’ Parker found some scoring punch in the fourth quarter and Saceda-Hurt hit from deep, and Casperson and Efergan found points at the charity stripe, but Summit added another 15 points for the 57-36 win.
“Overall, though, I didn’t see anything fatal,” coach Casperson said. “Everything we identified in our notes and post-game discussion can be addressed with a few more practices. We will get better…I believe four guys got their first varsity start and seven got their first varsity experience. I’m sure that was pretty cool for them.”
All 11 Crimson Bears found court time.
Casperson led the Crimson Bears with 11 points, Saceda-Hurt and Parker nine apiece, Efergan three, and Dybdahl and Frisby two apiece.
JDHS hit 5-10 at the charity stripe, Summit 8-10.
Logan Woolstenhulme led the Wildcats with 22 points, Blake Osguthorpe 11, Jack Johnson, Brooks Branca, Ryker Bowen and Joey Harris five each, and Maddox Welch and Billy Harris two apiece.
JDHS next plays Thursday against Coral Academy (Nevada), a 79-45 loser to Capistrano Valley Christian (California). There are 12 teams in the Crimson Bears bracket and over 150 teams playing in 12 brackets. The tournament runs through Saturday.
