HIGH SCHOOL BASKETBALL: Bulldogs rally in fourth quarter to nip Crook County, win tournament title

Published 3:29 pm Saturday, December 7, 2024

It was much tougher than the first two games, but the Baker boys basketball team stayed unbeaten on the season, rallying from a fourth-quarter deficit to beat Crook County 63-57 in the championship game of the Crook County Tip Off tournament Saturday afternoon, Dec. 7, in Prineville.

Baker trailed by one point at halftime and by two points after the third quarter, but the Bulldogs, the defending Class 4A champion, dominated the final few minutes.

The hometown Cowboys proved a much more formidable opponent than in Baker’s two blowout wins earlier in the tournament, 84-29 over Mazama on Thursday and 73-52 over Bend in Friday’s semifinal.

“Crook County game was a great test for us,” Baker coach Jebron Jones said. “They are a good team who will win lots of games this year. They hit a bunch of shots in the second quarer to build momentum and we dealt with it the right way. We didn’t play the blame game and continued to play hard in the second half even when they had the lead. We kept our composure throughout the game, which is a great sign for the future.”

The game started much as Baker’s two previous contests — and so many of its games during last year’s run to the state title.

Baker raced to a 24-11 lead after one quarter, fueled by seven points by Eli Long. The Bulldogs also showed their depth, with eight players scoring during the first quarter. Long, Palmer Chandler and Jaxon Logsdon each had a 3-pointer.

But the second quarter was quite a different span of eight minutes.

The Cowboys made five 3-pointers during the period, nearly reversing the first quarter score by outscoring Baker 24-10 to take a 35-34 lead at the break. Bryce Lowenbach had two of the long balls and 10 total points in the quarter.

Crook County added a point to its lead in the third quarter, outscoring the Bulldogs 11-10.

Baker pulled away in the final four minutes. Long had six of Baker’s 19 points in the quarter, and Grant Gambleton had five including the Bulldogs’ lone 3-pointer. Isaiah Jones scored four of his 12 points in the period.

Long led the Bulldogs with 21 points. Logsdon had eight points, and Rasean Jones and Gambleton seven each.

After totaling 11 and 10 3-pointers in the first two games, Baker had just six against Crook County.

Jebron Jones was pleased with Baker’s resilience as it opened a season with high expectations by playing three games in as many days.

“This tournament allowed us to play everyone and to see how we can get better moving forward,” he said. “I’m confident the team is ready and willing to improve. We have another long week with four games and this will test our mental strength as much as our skill set.”

Baker travels to Fruitland, Idaho, on Tuesday, Dec. 10, to play the Grizzlies at 6:30 p.m. PDT, then heads to Rocky Mountain High School in Meridian, Idaho, for the Owyhee Tournament starting Thursday, Dec. 12. Baker plays Eagle, Idaho, in its opening game at 2:30 p.m. Opponents and game times for Friday and Saturday are to be determined.

BAKER (63)

Gamblton 3 0-0 7, Chander 1 0-0 3, Churchfield 1 0-0 2, R. Jones, 2 3-4 7, I. Jones 6 0-0 12, I. Long 9 0-0 21, Logsdon 3 1-2 7, Holden 0 0-0 0, Joseph 1 1-1 3. Totals 26 5-7 63.

CROOK COUNTY (57)

Lopez 3 0-0 9, Kudlac 3 0-0 8, Jones 5 1-1 11, Lowenbuch 7 2-2 19, Stefanek 2 1-2 5, Prusak 2 0-0 5. Topics 22 4-5 57.

Baker       24    10     10     19  —   63

Crook Co. 11    24     11     12  —   57

Other games on Saturday:

Girls

Ione/Arlington 32, Powder Valley 24

Huntington 35, Enterprise JV 19

Union 56, Pine Eagle 25

Boys

Ione/Arlington 48, Powder Valley 46

Prairie City/Burnt River 63, Pine Eagle 32

Enterprise JV 50, Huntington 37