Encampment Tigers basketball has strong showing in preseason tournament

The Encampment Tigers boys and girls basketball finished the preseason Carbon County Classic with only one loss out of six total games in the Tigers Den of Encampment K-12 last weekend.

The boys finished undefeated and played hard on both sides of the ball this weekend, which allowed them to compete with some talented teams, according to head coach Duane Gilbert.

“To me being undefeated doesn’t mean anything at this point and time,” Gilbert said. “Winning is always nice but his time of year is more about playing the game and working on improving. The only games that really matter are the conference games, which will begin in January.”

The difference maker, for girls head coach Mandy Westerman, was her players mentality and willingness to play defense.

“My girls are mentally tough and they really like to play defense,” Westerman said. “The defense gave us the opportunity to score points especially on a lot of steals and fast breaks. We came out really strong with our press to begin the games and utilized a strong defense throughout.”

In total, the Tigers outscored their opponents 490-285. Both teams’ toughest match-up came against the Burlington Huskies on Saturday.

After multiple lead changes and a nail biter of a final period, the boys eked out a 59-52 victory and the girls fell 55-43 against the Huskies.

The boys grew a lot against the Huskies, Gilbert said.

“They just believed in the system and did their jobs which allowed for us to come out on top,” he said. “I really enjoy these types of games especially early in the season because it gives us experience that will become useful down the road. Those types of environments can’t be duplicated during practice.”

Westerman sees playing a team like the Huskies as an opportunity for her Tigers to learn about themselves and figure out what their weaknesses are, She said.

“In the book it is going to be recorded as a loss,” Westerman said about playing Burlington. “What we learned from that game was really valuable. In terms of what we need to work on and composure under pressure. We played well against them. They’re just a tough team.”

Playing at home with the support of the Encampment Community makes a big difference, according to Westerman.

“It’s amazing we can host these kinds of events,” she said.” “The community has always been incredible. We had teachers running clocks, keeping books and running concession stands all day long. The kids notice when their hometown shows up. They feel really supported and it’s a great way to start the season.”