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Saratoga boys take one win and two losses in close games
The Saratoga Panthers basketball team went to the tournament in Burns and had three close games, only one of which they could hang on to for the win.
The Panthers' first game was against Moorcroft and ended with a loss, 46-48. "That was kind of a heartbreaker actually," head coach Jason Williams said, adding, "The Moorcroft game was definitely a game we could have won." Williams said the team came out tight and defended the perimeter well, but the Moorcroft Wolves were just too much for the Panthers in a back and forth game that was tied at the half.
Williams said that the Panthers just did not have their legs under them for the second game on Friday which ended in a loss to the Shoshoni Wranglers, 40-57.
Saturday proved to be a different story for the Panthers. Coach Williams said the team came out fired up and performed well. Saratoga steadily built a lead through the game which proved unsurmountable by a fourth quarter comeback for the Lingle-Fort Laramie Doggers. The Panthers left the court after a 45-43 win.
Jace Berger had a good weekend for the Panthers, averaging a double-double over the three games. Berger had support from Cameron Lehr, Rod Escobedo and Darian Williams throughout the tournament. "Jace is the dominant big guy, but our guards are fairly balanced," Williams said of the team.
This coming weekend brings the Panthers to a tournament in Shoshoni where they are hoping to put up a better game against the Wranglers. They will also play Rocky Mountain and Cokeville which coach Williams does not know much about since the teams will have new looks this year.
The Shoshsoni-Thermpolois tournament starts for the Panthers at 4 p.m. on Friday against Rocky Mountain. The Panthers face Shoshoni at 8:30 p.m. on Friday and Cokeville at 3 p.m. on Saturday.
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