The Oregon City boys basketball team continued its productive season on Thursday night, Feb. 1, outlasting Lakeridge 49-43 in a Three Rivers League defensive battle at Lakeridge High School.
With the win, the Pioneers improved to 11-5 on the season and 3-1 in Three Rivers League play, jumping to No. 8 in the latest OSAA 6A rankings and into a tie for first place in the conference standings.
Meanwhile, Lakeridge fell to 11-6 and 2-2 with the loss, dropping to No. 26 in the latest statewide rankings and into fourth place in the league standings.
“I’m really proud of everyone. We fought really hard,” Oregon City senior Dylan Westermeyer said.
Westermeyer led the Pioneers with a game-high 20 points to go alongside eight rebounds and two assists.
During a back-and-forth first quarter, the senior scored seven early points as Oregon City surged from behind to take just a 12-11 deficit into the second period.
From there, the Pioneers continued to clamp down defensively and take control of the game, holding the Pacers to just four second quarter points to take a 22-16 lead into the halftime break.
At that point, Westermeyer continued to lead all scorers with 11 points, while Lakeridge had no player with more than four points.
In what was a competitive game, it was the defensive effort that stood out on both sides.
“We’re really a defensive-minded team,” Westermeyer said. “We know the offense will come so we just gotta work on defense, keeping our hands up, not fouling and staying in front of people, and we’ve been working on that for a long time, so it paid off.”
In the third quarter, Oregon City continued to make the Pacers uncomfortable, forcing a series of frantic possessions and turnovers.
Still, both offenses started to get going in the second half as the Pioneers outscored Lakeridge 22-17 in the third quarter to take a 44-33 advantage into the fourth. Of the Pioneers’ 22 points in that quarter, Westermeyer and junior Gylan Payne combined for 14.
Then the Pacers made their move, opening the fourth quarter on a 10-0 run that swiftly cut the deficit to one and ignited the home crowd.
Diogo Alves knocked down a long two-point jumpshot, Nick Ghetie scored in transition and knocked down a pair of free throws, and Jack Clarke added a rebound bucket as Lakeridge charged back.
Then, Oregon City responded with its own 5-0 run to close the game, all from the free throw line as the Pacers tried and failed to force quick turnovers.
“This week we had one night off,” Westermeyer said. “And it’s tough because every game is a battle, so we really can’t take a day off.”
Ultimately, the Pioneers picked up a big win on the road Thursday, moving one step closer to an evasive league title in what has been a competitive Three Rivers League thus far. As it stands, Oregon City, Tualatin and West Linn are tied for first at 3-1.
Alongside Westermeyer’s game-leading 20, Payne added 13 points, eight rebounds, two assists and two steals, while senior big Miles Daly added nine points, eight rebounds, three assists, two steals and a block for the Pioneers.
Senior Cole Holum led Lakeridge with eight points to go alongside four rebounds, one block and one steal. Ghetie added seven points,, four rebounds and two assists, while Clarke led the team with five rebounds and senior Kade Gjesdal led the team with four assists.
The Pacers will be in action again on Monday, Feb. 5, as they travel to take on crosstown rival Lake Oswego. Meanwhile, Oregon City will host West Linn the same night. Both games are set to tip at 6:30 p.m.
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