Courtesy of VHS Coaches – This weekend the Buccaneer’s JV boys’ basketball team travelled to Reddington high school to participate in the JV Redding Tournament.
Fielding only 6 players, the Bucs had a long weekend ahead of them beginning with a first-round rematch of last year’s tournament against the Homer Mariners.
Valdez found themselves in a deficit early due to some tired legs and Homer’s size in the interior, and at the half were down 18-26.
The second half saw the Bucs playing some inspired team defense. Holding the Mariners progressively to their two lowest scoring quarters lead by Romen Weber’s 5 drawn charges.
In the end, the Bucs paid the price for a few costly turnovers and missed free throws and Homer’s lead would be just out of reach as they went on to defeat Valdez 43-38. Brody Liljedhal and Jayce Branshaw lead the way scoring 11 points apiece.
Valdez faced off against Point Ley in a matinee showdown on day 2. Both teams seemed to come out fairly sloppy on defense which led to a high scoring first half where Valdez managed to lead 28-20. Addressing some of the problems of the first half, Valdez turned their focus to limiting Point Ley to one shot per possession and better help defense.
The following two quarters the Bucs were able to hold Point Ley to 5 and 7 points, while having their best scoring quarter of the tournament in the 3rd, 16 points, and further extending their lead in the fourth to win 52-32. All Bucs registered at least 6 points in the game, led by Branshaw’s 13.
The final day of Bucs basketball saw Valdez playing the hometown Reddington Huskies. Reddington came out hot and managed to take an 8-2 lead against the Bucs after one quarter.
The Bucs responded well to adversity and a hostile environment by playing tough physical defense and went on a nice scoring run to take a halftime lead 14-10. Valdez continued its stifling defense in the second half with great communication, help side positioning and several charges drawn.
The Bucs maintained their lead in the fourth quarter and held off any thoughts of a Reddington comeback to win the game 30-26. Romen Weber led the way with 17 points and Jayce Branshaw added 12.