Serving Lincoln County for more than a century!
Serving Lincoln County for more than a century!
Reardan senior Tristo McCrea tries to get off a shot against Brewster sophomore Oscar Churape Tuesday. The Bears topped the Screaming Eagles 76-56 Dec. 20.
REARDAN - The wins may not be showing up in the record books, but the Screaming Eagles boys basketball team is gaining valuable experience by playing a gauntlet of tough teams before league play kicks into high gear in January. That was especially apparent Tuesday, when the defending state-runner up Brewster Bears came to town and knocked off Reardan 76-56 Dec. 20.
The Bears gained their advantage almost entirely in the first quarter, hitting three after three and whipping the ball around the perimeter in the blink of an eye. University of Portland commit Kelson Gebbers scored 21 of his game-high 27 points in the first eight minutes, leading Brewster to a 35-16 lead.
"They couldn't miss the first quarter. We controlled it much better in the next three quarters," Reardan head coach Brian Graham said. "He's tough. He can score from inside, outside...he's a good player, but he plays the right way."
Reardan was able to match Brewster's scoring output in the second quarter but couldn't slow the Bears attack. Brewster led 55-35.
Reardan turned up the intensity on the defensive end in the third quarter and held Brewster to just two points in the period. The Screaming Eagles scored 11 points to cut the deficit to 57-46 before the Bears pulled away again the fourth quarter.
If not for a last-second fast-break layup by Brady Wulf, Reardan would have outscored Brewster in the final three quarters of play.
"We want to play the best teams in the state. Our league is already tough as nails, but I want to fill our nonleague with great teams," Graham said. "It doesn't do us any good to play easy wins. I want to play tough teams to get us better."
Gebbers finished with 27 points and nine rebounds. Wulf and Tyson Schertenleib scored 12 points each for a Brewster team that had eight players in the scoring column.
Jakari Singleton turned in an excellent performance for Reardan with 13 points and 14 rebounds. Rysen Soliday had 13 points of his own, while Evan Krupke contributed nine points and five rebounds off the bench for Reardan.
The Screaming Eagles will look to notch a league win against Kettle Falls Thursday, Dec. 22 before another tough nonconference matchup against Okanogan Friday, Dec. 23.
Drew Lawson is the editor of the Davenport Times. He is a graduate of Eastern Washington University.
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