Park boys’ basketball fell short 59-87 to the Waconia Wildcats on Jan. 15, in a conference game. The Orioles started the game rough, struggling to keep up, but kept it close for the rest of the first half. After the first half, Waconia extended its score and led by a final 28-point lead. Tanner Rose had 15 points, and Matthew Johnson had 14, which were both notable performances that were overlooked in the loss.
Sophomore Caleb Schwab said the team should continue to focus on growth moving forward. According to him, having athletic and psychological toughness is significant, and the team needs to prioritize those qualities.
“We can improve on some teamwork and focus on getting tougher mentally and physically, (and overall) being prepared for the game,” Schwab said.
Sophomore Logan Hass said the late-game point deficit was the most challenging time of the game. According to him, the point gap was near impossible to overcome, and gave Waconia positive momentum.
“The end (was the most challenging part) because trying to come back from down 25 is pretty hard with a couple of minutes left,” Hass said.
According to assistant coach William Leftridge, areas of communication and ambition are a main factor in why Park failed to secure the win. Leftridge said competitiveness and intensity were lacking and need to be worked on before the upcoming games.
“(The team’s lack of) talking and competitiveness (lost us the game). We didn’t play tough enough, and we didn’t talk enough on defense to get the job done,” Leftridge said.
Hass said an electric part of the game is when Tanner Rose scored eight points in a row. According to Hass, this helped bring some hope to the bench, other players on the court, and fans like us in the stands.
“Tanner had eight straight points, back to back to back, and that was pretty cool to see,” Hass said.
Schwab said the team did not play well on defense. Schwab said the defense has to be improved before the next game, as we can not let the opposing team get any shot they want.
“We didn’t do well enough on defense, and we let them get whatever shot they want,” Schwab said.
According to Leftride, trying your best and putting in your best effort is key to playing a good basketball game. He said he hopes to see the team bounce back and have higher spirits on the court in future games.
“(After our loss), we have to prepare for the next team and be ready to go. We need high effort,” Leftridge said.
