By Jeremy McDonald

jeremymcdonald73@gmail.com

JEFFERSON, Ore.–  This game felt like a good old brotherly love game.

With how much both the kids at Jefferson and Santiam boys have played with each other growing up, Saturday afternoon’s game was just another chapter in that sibling rivalry with it living up to the billing.

“We’ve been playing against them for a long time.  It’s a fun time, it’s fun playing against them,” the Wolverines Quintin Clark said of the game.

“It’s really fun, we’ve been playing against them since we were really little so we know how everyone plays and match each other well.  But we just brought the energy a little more tonight,” adds the Lions Diego Aguliar.

In a game in which both squads are similar in build, Jefferson having the lone height in Cody Jurgens, much of the game was very intense and high-energy with both team’s neck-and-neck tied at 21 at the halftime break.

“It was really, really good for us.  It was really big for us.  We just got to play as a team and stay together,” Jurgens said of the intensity.  “It’s just a lot of practice really.  We’ve just had those situations in practice.”

Payday came towards the end of the third quarter going into the fourth quarter in slowly swinging the momentum needle of Jefferson.  Turning a 32-31 lead to a 45-38 lead going into the fourth quarter before Santiam drew them back in midway through the fourth quarter.

The Wolverines had made it a two-point, 51-49 deficit, but the little things had hurt Santiam in their pursuit of their second win of the season.  Turnovers and not getting those offensive rebounds factored into the end result with the Lions pulling away in the final four minutes of the contest.

“I feel like if we take down the turnovers, we probably win this game,” Gage Twede said.  “It was mainly the turnovers and offensive rebounds that messed us up.  The game plan came in knowing their bigs with Diego and Jace (Aguilar) are their leading scorers so we had me and Quintin on them trying to stop them.”

The two Aguilar’s were held to a combined 32 points, Jace with 18 and Diego with another 14 as their outside options opened up for Jefferson.  Jurgens and Eli Stelly each had 11 to help pick up the slack with their top shooters being occupied by Santiam’s defense.

The Lions host Blanchet Catholic Tuesday at 7:30pm.

The Wolverines, who travel to Gervais Tuesday, saw Clark with 18 points, Twede with 16 points and Ezra Downey with another 10 in the game Saturday.

Photos By Jeremy McDonald