Lahser pulls even with Oxford in OAA-Gold race
BY DAN STICKRADT
SENIOR EDITOR
dan.stickradt@northoaklandsports.com
BLOOMFIELD HILS — Andrew Gikas picked the opportune night to have a career outing.
The junior forward from Bloomfield Hills Lahser scored a career-high 20 points to go along 10 rebounds, three steals and three assists in leading the home-standing Knights to a 63-51 OAA Gold Division boys basketball victory Thursday over Oxford.
The win avenged an earlier, 49-42, defeat by the hands of the Wildcats and it also enabled Lahser to pull into a first-place tie with Oxford entering the final week of the regular season.
“I was really clicking out there,’ admitted Gikas. “I think it was a total team effort out there. I have been having a rough season so far, but I went out there and just played.”
Lahser needed a win to stay in the hunt. An Oxford win would have given the Wildcats their first league title in 31 years. Instead, it brought pair of frontrunners into a situation to win out in order to share the league title.
Lahser will play Birmingham Groves and Hazel Park next week, while Oxford faces third-place Royal Oak and Bloomfield Hills Andover.
“(The last time we played), we had a bus issue. We had guys showing up late, going to the wrong school. So we never got off to a very good start,” said Lahser coach Dwayne Graves. “Today we were focused and determined. I’m very proud of my boys because they work hard and determined to be ready tonight. They played well.”
NO WHERE TO GO: Oxford' s Nate Brubaker (No. 21) looks to get past Bloomfield Hills Lahser's Yante Montez during Thursday's OAA Gold Division showdown. Staff Photo | Dan Stickradt
Lahser converted a season-best 66.7 percent of its field-goal attempts, going a fine 26-for-39 from the floor and 10-for-18 from the foul line (56 percent).
Gikas was so on his mark that after an early miss, he made nine straight shots from the floor, followed by two free throws before missing again with a jumper with 45 seconds left in the game. Gikas had plenty of help, as the Knights (13-5, 6-2) opened with a 10-3 run and never trailed.
Yante Maten, Lahser’s fast-rising 6-foot-7 sophomore post player, was a load inside, collecting 17 points with eight rebounds, three blocked shots and three assists. Kihil Gracey supplied six points, nine rebounds and six assists, while Martez Jones poured in 14 points with four rebounds for Lahser.
The Knights led 14-9 at the end of the first quarter, before going on a 17-8 spurt in the second stanza for a 31-17 lead at the half. Lahser led by as many as 18 points in the third quarter (47-29) and thanks to a 6-2 run to start the fourth quarter, led by as many as 24 points (55-31) with 5:32 left in the contest.
Oxford could never trim the deficit to under 12 points in the second half.
“It just wasn’t our night,” said Oxford coach Paul Marfia. “Now we just have to go out and win both games next week and that won’t be easy at all.”
Oxford let a golden opportunity slip out of its grasp. The Wildcats had a chance to clinch at least a share of the OAA-Gold title, which would have been Oxford’s first since sharing the North Oakland Athletic Conference title in 1981. Instead, the Wildcats must win out in order to gain a share and end a title drought of more than three decades.
Oxford forced 20 turnovers and closed with a 22-14 run, chipping away into the Knights’ lead in the fourth quarter. But time ran out far before the Wildcats could make a serious dent.
The Wildcats (13-5, 7-2) shot themselves in the collective foot the while night on the offensive end, finishing a season-low 17-for-65 from the floor (26.2 percent) and only 5-for-23 from outside the 3-point arc (21.8 percent). Oxford finished 12-of-19 from the foul line.
Mark Hazelwood, who came in averaging 17.7 points a game, was well off the mark for Oxford. He was 2-for-18 from the floor, including 1-of-12 from outside the arc, and scored six of his 11 points from the foul line.
Michael Kitchner drilled four 3-pointers and led Oxford with 18 points and four steals, while Jacques Toussaint chipped in with eight points, six assists, four rebounds and three steals for the Wildcats.
“I think we came out and the execution could have been better,” said Marfia. “They played some good zone against us and that sort of gets you passive out there. (Lahser) had great length, great size, they play to their strength. We just had some shots that didn’t fall and it could have been a different ball game if they did.
“Tonight was a game of inches,” continued Marfia. “Whether it be in height, whether it be the length of their arms, or an inch here or there on a couple of those (3-point attempts). The worse thing about it we missed a couple and it sort of got in tour head.”
GAME DAY STORY FROM FIRST MEETING: http://northoaklandsports.com/2012/01/27/goal-oriented-oxford-gets-defensive-on-lahser/
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