Senior Preston Kramer scored 25 points and Philomath got a strong performance from its bench in a 54-34 win Thursday over Scappoose.
The Warriors (7-2) have now won five straight games and could sweep through the Philomath Tournament unscathed with another victory Friday night against Marist Catholic.
Gallery: PHS boys basketball vs. Scappoose (Dec. 28, 2023)
A collection of photos from Philomath High’s 54-34 boys basketball win over Scappoose in the Philomath Tournament on Thursday.
“Our whole team really stepped up and played ball together — especially on the defensive end,” PHS coach Blake Ecker said. “We flew around and gave them fits. I saw some stuff on film we had of them and that’s why we went more with some pressure stuff and it seemed to work out pretty well. They did have some open looks but didn’t knock them down.”
Philomath’s bench played major minutes in the victory, a group that included junior Caleb Russell, senior Mason Stearns, junior Hudson Raab and junior Logan Matthews.
“They came in and produced and rebounded and took charges,” Ecker said. “They did a really nice job and I was proud of them, really happy with them.”
Their contributions were needed more than ever after the team’s second-leading scorer, senior Jacob Peters, left the floor late in the first quarter with an ankle injury. Peters spent the rest of the evening lying on his back near the bench with his right foot packed in ice and elevated to keep the swelling down.
“It looks like he’s going to have some X-rays in the morning,” Ecker said. “It’s a nice ankle sprain so it’s not something that he’s going to be back tomorrow playing at half speed.”
Matthews took advantage of the opportunity and lit up the scoreboard with a trio of 3-pointers — two of those in the second quarter as the Warriors started to pull away for good. His other trey came late in the fourth.
“He’s not typically known for his 3-point shooting but he’s been doing better in practice … he’s actually been kind of working on it,” Ecker said.
Philomath led just 6-5 with two minutes remaining in the first quarter but put together a 16-1 run to take control. Kramer got the streak going with a hoop at 1:25, senior Kaden Muir scored on a put-back and Kramer finished after a turnover to give the Warriors a 12-6 lead at the end of the first.
To begin the second, Matthews hit his first 3-pointer, Kramer scored with an assist by Russell and on a put-back and then Matthews buried his second 3 for a 22-6 advantage.
By halftime, the Philomath lead was 25-11.
In the second half, the Warriors kept up the pace and led by 29 at one point in the third quarter before easing up in the fourth.
Kramer’s 25 points came on 11 field goals, which included two 3-pointers in the third quarter, and 1 of 3 on free throws. Matthews finished with 11 points in all.
Freshman Elijah Greenan Biggs had eight points for the Indians (5-4).
Philomath and Marist Catholic are scheduled for a 7 p.m. tip-off Friday. The Spartans come into the game with a 6-4 record and in the tournament, lost to Scappoose, 55-50, and beat Sutherlin, 51-15.
