The Kingston Redskins went head-to-head with the Hugo Buffaloes on February 27. Even though they put up a good fight, unfortunately, they did not get the win. Coach Taylor Weibner said he had a game plan that was working in all phases except one.
“We just couldn’t knock down shots” he said after falling to Hugo 44 to 33. “They scored 90+ points in their district game; if you told me before the game that we would hold them to half of that I would take it in a minute.” So, their defensive plan was spot on.
For anybody following either team, they had to know it was going to be a battle. Hugo came into the game 16 and 6, and a # 11 ranking in Class 3A. The Redskins were ranked # 18 in 3A with an 18 and 5 record.
In the first quarter, Kaden Johnson scored all of the Redskin points – all four of them. The Buffaloes were having their own problems scoring. Jesse Rose picked up his second foul with barely three minutes gone in the game; off to the bench he went. Marshall Ludrick and Bryson Ellisor both played well in relief of Rose. Hugo was up 10 to 4 at the end of the quarter.
Second quarter was almost a mirror image of the first. Johnson was getting to the rim on drives but was unable to connect. He was, however, 2 of 2 from the line. It was Ludrick that had the only Redskin field goals; he connected on a three and a two-point goal. One might think that Hugo would be up by a large margin; not so. They managed only 9 points of their own and led 19 to 11 going into the halftime. This only proved Coach Weibner’s point.
The third quarter had Johnson again getting inside and drawing fouls. He was 2 of two from the line and had a soft jumper in the lane. Dakota Weibner was finally able to get his shot and knocked down a three pointer. The Buffaloes’ gain held 10 points in the quarter. The lead after the third quarter was 29 to 18.
Redskin fans were hopeful that Kingston would break out and score some points. Kaden Johnson took the ball the length of the court and scored. He took a lot of contact but could not get to the line. He had three such drives. Weibner added a long three pointer, and Jase Hays scored his only bucket of the night. Drew Caps connected for two field goals. A fifteen-point quarter was not enough to catch the Buffaloes who were scoring fifteen of their own. The final score was 44 to 33.
Final stats: Johnson led the team with 16 points, followed by Weibner who had 6. Ludrick had 5 and Capps had 4. Hays had 2 points. This might be the most significant stat of the night; as a team, the Redskins were 4 of 8 from the line, for the entire game. Meanwhile, Hugo was going 12 of 16. Granted, the Redskins had to foul late in the game, but the Buffaloes had already taken six attempts in the fourth quarter when this occurred. One Buffalo was 7 of 8 in the quarter, as many attempts as the Redskins had all night.
The Redskins will now take a road that has not been traveled in the last two years. That being the losers’ bracket. From this point on it will be win or go home.