After a break from action, the Encampment men were back at full force with two conference games on the road last weekend. Encampment (10-1) (3-0) played Cokeville (9-2) (2-2) on Friday and then Farson (1-11) (1-3) on Saturday.
“We were happy to get two conference wins,” coach Dan Kraft said.
Cokeville played very solid fundamentally and kept possession of the ball, passing around until the shot they wanted came open.
Cokeville played deliberate offense, keeping the ball as long as they could, a tactic that makes opposing defenses either play better or commit more fouls, but the Tigers found a way around it.
“We played solid defense and kept the ball in front of us,” Kraft said. “We held Cokeville to 33 percent from the field. That won the game for us.”
The Tigers tried to play aggressive defensively at first and almost fell into Cokeville’s foul trap. A.J. Kuster drew two early and Kraft called Kuster to the bench until the second half to save him as a resource. Encampment settled into their defense and committed fewer fouls as the game drew on.
“The kids did a great job of staying away from the fouls,” Kraft said. “They kept the ball in front of them and made Cokeville shoot over the top of the defense once we settled down a bit.”
Kuster ended the night with a solid 8 points and nine rebounds followed by Waddie Love with 14 points and eight rebounds. Gaven Pantle’s selfless effort at point guard, provided nine assists in the course of the night.
The game went into overtime and Encampment won 38-36.
Kyle Wessel continued to play well and had key blocked shots of Cokeville’s post player late in the game and that was a big factor for Encampment according to Kraft.
Although Farson Eden has struggled so far this season, it was a good learning experience for Encampment.
“They (Farson) were the most aggressive defense we have seen this season,” Kraft said. “Farson pressured the ball and the passing lanes and were after the basketball the whole game.”
According to Kraft, Encampment did an excellent job of taking care of the ball. The Tigers only turned the ball over nine times and had the best rebounding game of the season on both ends of the court.
A.J. Kuster racked up a double, double with 16 points and 11 rebounds. Waddie Love had an outstanding nine rebounds and Pantle had a huge game with 11 points, three steals and three assists.
In Brett Miller’s time on the floor, he found 2 points, three rebounds and four assists.
“Brett played great defense as usual,” Kraft said.
The Tigers handily beat Farson 49-25.
Encampment played North Park on Tuesday night but the results were not available at press time.
Up next for the Tigers will be two home games against Rock River and the Laramie sophomore team this weekend.
“Rock River we have played and we know them well,” Kraft said. “They have talented offensive players and we have to keep them under control. We don’t know anything about the Laramie team, but they have good numbers and a lot of athleticism. They usually have some good shooters and it will be a good test for us.”
The Friday games start at 4 p.m. and Saturday’s matches will go off at noon.
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