By RYAN WALKER
The Norwell boys’ basketball team defended home court Saturday afternoon against Oak Hill 76-50.
Head coach Michael McBride gave credit to his team, including players off the bench, but specifically his junior guard Cohen Bailey.
“They’re a really good basketball team,” he said after the game. “They’ve got a high-level player in (Landon) Biegel, who’s going to Huntington, and they’re really good. I thought Cohen Bailey was a big key in the game. I thought his performance, not only on the offensive end, was really good, but I just thought that what he did on the defensive side of the basketball on Biegel was really key there in the second half.”
Biegel was held to just four field goals on 11 shots for the night, while his opposition in Bailey scored 21 points on seven for nine from the floor.
The Knights’ (2-1) outscored the Eagles (2-1) 37 to 14 in the second half and didn’t allow over single digits in those quarters.
The game was the first time the two had meet since they faced off in the sectional championship game last year, Norwell grabbing a one-point victory at the same venue.
Oak Hill, this time though, had the advantage early on, starting the game off up 10-3. The Knights would use the three-ball to crawl back to an 11-11 tie from Lleyton Bailey and Cohen Bailey.
Caleb Kroll would put the Eagles back in front with a converted and-one and a pair of free throws, but Norwell would respond with four straight triples coming from Lleyton Bailey, Luke McBride, a four-point play by Cohen Bailey, and Gavin Hoeppner to spark a 15-2 run in the final two minutes of the quarter.
“We’ve got good shooters, so if we get good shots, they have a chance to make a high percentage of them. But I felt like we got a lot of good shots. We were able to get the ball in the inside of the zone, which then created some opportunities on the perimeter. I think that makes a big difference when you’re able to do that,” McBride said.
Oak Hill would have an answer in the second quarter – the only quarter one in which they outscored Norwell – thanks to Biegel’s six points and a few scattered three-pointers of its own.
Kroll would start the second half with a bucket to pull within one point, but not for long. McBride would hit a free throw, and he and Cohen Bailey would knock down a pair of threes. Brody Bolyn would hit a free throw to end the scoring run at eight in a row.
McBride would hit back-to-back shots to force a timeout, but by then, it was too late and finished the quarter out on a 7-2.
The Knights would answer nearly every made shot for the Eagles in the fourth quarter to close the game out on a 26-point win.
Though it’s early, the game could be a preview for a game down the road. Both teams have the potential to meet again in the sectional tournament.
The head coach gave credit to Oak Hill for being well-coached and having a strong group of players, which he understands can improve by the next time they might face off in March.
“Nobody knows what’s going to happen between now and then. We might not play them in the sectional, and we may play each other. But if we play each other, we’re both going to be different by the end of the year.”
“It’s about trying to continue to work on the things that we have to work on and get better, and then go out into a game where there’s going to be high-level coaching and high-level players against a high-level team and then be able to perform and execute those teams. And that’s what we’re looking for.”
Norwell’s junior varsity team also picked up a win over Oak Hill 49-40. Leading scorers for the Knights were Adam McBride with 21 points and Brody Smith had 17.
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OAK HILL 50, NORWELL 76,
At Norwell High School
OAK HILL (2-1): Kaleb Kroll 7-12 2-4 17, Matthew Strange 3-9 5-5 13, Landon Biegel 4-11 4-4 12, Grant Elzinga 3-5 1-2 8, Levi Trexler 0-2 0-0 0, Lucas Hasty 0-0 0-0 0, Ty Fagan 0-1 0-0 0. TOTALS: 17-41 12-17 50.
NORWELL (2-1): Cohen Bailey 7-9 3-4 21, Luke McBride 7-14 4-4 21, Lleyton Bailey 7-13 0-2 19, Brody Bolyn 0-2 1-2 1, Gavin Hoeppner 1-4 0-0 3, Luke Graft 4-7 1-5 9, Adam McBride 0-0 0-0 0, Ashton Federspiel 1-1 0-0 2.
Team Score
Oak Hill 18 18 6 8 — 50
Norwell 26 13 20 17 — 76
Three Point Goals: Oak Hill 4-17 (Strange 2-6, Kroll 1-2, Elzinga 1-3, Trexler 0-2, Biegel 0-3), Norwell 13-25 (L. Bailey 5-10, C. Bailey 4-5, L. McBride 3-6, Hoeppner 1-4). Rebounds: Oak Hill 18 (Kroll 4, Biegel 4, Strange 2, Elzinga 2, Fagan 2, Trexler 1, Hasty 1, Sweet 1), Norwell 18 (Graft 9, Bolyn 5, L. McBride 4, L. Bailey 3, Federspiel 2, C. Bailey 1). Turnovers: Oak Hill 17, Norwell 9. Fouls Oak Hill 16, Norwell 17. Fouled Out: None. Technical: None
