Trailing 6-0 less than 2 minutes into Saturday evening’s season opener against Junction City, Philomath High girls basketball coach Ben Silva called a timeout.
The preseason No. 1-ranked Warriors were struggling — Anneka Steen’s first shot clanged off the back of the rim, Shaylee May wasn’t able to finish in transition on a pass from Reagan Heiken and a short time later, Heiken took a hard spill on the court (although she popped right up with a smile on her face).
Gallery: PHS girls basketball vs. Junction City (Dec. 7, 2024)
A collection of photos from Philomath High’s 45-19 home girls basketball victory over Junction City on Saturday.
Meanwhile, Junction City drew a foul, hit a free throw and scored after a turnover on a basket from Emma Probert with an assist to Kate Dickson. A short time later, Ophelia Johnson buried a 3-pointer.
But the early burst from the Tigers turned out to be an anomaly. Philomath outscored Junction City 22-2 over the rest of the first half and went on to a 45-19 victory.
“Early on, it just kind of looked like it was our first game where we gave up some shots … we usually defend a little bit better,” PHS coach Ben Silva said. “But then after that, once we settled in, we showed what we’re capable of doing on the defensive end. If we hold teams to 20 and under, I assume we’re going to win a lot of games.”
During the early timeout, Silva stressed to his players to simply settle down and set up the offense. On defense, the Warriors went to a press to disrupt Junction City’s offensive flow.
“I think our defense is very good at changing (strategies) and working with what the offense gives us to use it against them,” Steen said. “I think we do a good job of working together and communicating just throughout the whole team.”
As the No. 1 team — PHS occupied the top spot in the OSAAtoday coaches preseason poll — the Warriors typically draw the best efforts from opponents eager to knock them off. Steen welcomes those challenges.
“I think we love it,” she said. “We’re excited for the season and we’re ready to go. We still have things to work on but we’ll get there.”
Philomath got on the scoreboard for the first time with 5:17 remaining in the first quarter on a Heiken put-back. Seconds later, Aspen Russell scored on a layup after a Junction City turnover to cut the deficit to 6-4. Dickson countered with a jump shot but the Warriors soon took the lead with May hitting a 3-pointer followed by a Russell fast-break basket on a pass from Heiken.
The May and Russell baskets represented the beginning of a 27-0 scoring run for the Warriors. Junction City failed to score in the second quarter and didn’t hit a basket again until the 2:31 mark of the third quarter. By that time, the game was out of reach.
Steen, a 5-foot-10 senior, had a team-high 14 points in the victory, a performance that included a pair of 3-pointers. Heiken, a sophomore, finished with 13 on six field goals and a free throw.
“We are running a couple of new plays and they’re faster paced,” Steen said about the offense. “We’re trying to run out more to get those transition points.”
Aspen Russell impacted the game on both offense and defense.
“She came in and played with some confidence,” Silva said. “I think she did a great job running the floor and she’s always tough on the defense end.”
Philomath led 16-8 at the end of the first quarter. Steen scored on an offensive rebound, Heiken finished in transition and Annaleise Brown buried a 3-pointer in the final second after a Junction City player had saved the ball from going out of bounds.
In the second quarter, Philomath built a 22-8 lead, the highlight being a perfect pass-and-score play that involved Heiken to Russell. Brown hit a couple of more baskets with assists to Mica Boynton and Russell, respectively. But over the final 4:43 minutes, Philomath’s offense got a little sloppy and didn’t score any more points.
Philomath continued its scoring run into the third quarter with Steen finding a rhythm with seven points in just over five minutes. She hit a 3-pointer at the 3:40 mark and followed with a drive in the lane at 2:52 for a 31-8 lead.
After Junction City finally stopped the scoring run, the Warriors outscored the visitors 14-8 the rest of the way. Highlights included a basket by freshman Reagan Nuno, who had been brought up from the JV to replace an injured Zoee Howard, and a Steen 3-pointer to open the fourth quarter. Heiken scored the team’s final seven points.
In the end, Silva said his biggest takeaway was the overall team effort.
“We had an injury, we had foul trouble but just like each kid that came in contributed at a high level,” Silva said. “I think we went 10 deep today. Everybody was able to come in and contribute.”
Philomath (1-0) will face a stiffer test Tuesday with a trip to Eugene to face Marist Catholic. The Spartans defeated Creswell, 52-47, in their season opener on Friday.
