Portland St. Patrick at Lansing Christian – – Boys Basketball – – The Bleacher Denizen – – December 6, 2022 – – by Chuck Krafft

It’s the first week of the boys’ basketball season and I am driving the BleacherDenizenMobile over hither and yon to the ends of the earth to drive the mile necessary to get to Lansing Christian School from his house. Your Bleacher Denizen made the trip up Jolly Road and got to the school with few if any severe traffic incidents, so I guess it was a good trip.

While we are waiting for the game to start, we can listen to “O Holy Night” from my You Tube Channel.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a-t_hOWhFfE

I met Lansing Christian Coach Grayson Fuller, who gave me this information about his Cougar players.

Elijah Ellis is a fine perimeter defender who slashes well to the basket. Timothy Sullivan is a fine defender who is not afraid of contact. He slashes well to the basket and has added a three point shot to his game this year. Judah Schafer is a tough perimeter defender who can either slash to the basket or snipe from the three point line on offense.

Benjamin Sambaer is a point guard with all the skills you would expect from the position. He is a great perimeter defender and handles the ball well on offense. He passes well and is a threat either driving to the basket or shooting from the three point line. Samuel Israel is a rugged player who does not shy away from contact inside. He is a fine defender and rebounder near the basket. He also has an uncanny way of scoring in traffic using his strength and intensity to get the ball to the basket.

Baylor Brogan is a fine defender and rebounder in the post who plays the game with limitless energy. David Hall is a fine rebounder and post defender.

St. Patrick Coach Curtis Meyers provided me with this information about his Shamrock players.

Brayden Simon is an excellent athlete who can rebound and defend well. On offense, he is a good three point shooter who has the strength and determination to score in the post as well. Payton Russman can score from the three point line or on drives to the basket. Landon Simpson is a fine ball handler and perimeter defender who is a threat from the three point line. Alex Fedewa is a good outside shooter and versatile defender who can defend well on the perimeter or in the post. Devin Cook is a tough post defender and rebounder.

Brady Leonard and Jerryd Scheurer are good on-ball defenders who can handle the ball and are a threat from the three point line. Charlie Thelen has a fine basketball IQ and is a strong post defender who also brings an accurate three point shot to the Shamrocks. Nathan Fears is an aggressive on-ball defender. Mason Simon is another good perimeter defender who can hit the three point shot. Davide is an exchange student who is a great teammate and works hard in practice.

In the JV game, St. Patrick got off to a big lead and coasted to a 47-31 win. Ethan Damesworth led the JV Pilgrims with 13 points. Quinn Jamieson added 7 points and Ethan Shank scored 6 points. Will Stone had 3 points and Jack Bajema tallied 2 points.

Jerryd Scheurer and Brady Leonard each had 10 points to lead the Shamrock JVs. T.J. Chamberlain supported his teammates with 9 points. Mason Simon put in 6 points and Nathan Fears added 5 points. Aiden Mosser threw in 3 points. Charlie Thelen and Brody Beckhold each scored 2 points.

It is now time to review the events of this game from the hopefully astute perspective of an aging Bleacher Denizen who was never able to escape church league when he attempted to play basketball in ancient times. Alas, he was never completely able to learn that coaches are not comfortable when you pass the ball to players wearing a jersey of a different color from his.

Christian wins the opening tap. Benjamin Sambaer passes to Samuel Israel, who is fouled as he shoots a layup. He hits one of his two free throws to give Christian the first point of the game. Judah Schafer steals the ball for the Pilgrims and hits a fast break layup. St. Patrick misses a six foot runner on the baseline. Christian fouls on the rebound. Samuel Israel blocks a Shamrock threeball. Christian misses a three point shot from the wing; Benjamin Sambaer hits a putback to give the Pilgrims a 5-0 lead.

St. Patrick loses the ball out of bounds. Christian misses a layup; Judah Schafer pulls down the offensive rebound for the Pilgrims. Christian turns the ball over. Judah Schafer knocks the ball away from the Shamrocks and Elijah Ellis picks it up for the Pilgrims. Benjamin Sambaer is fouled on a driving layup and hits two free throws for Christian. St. Patrick misses an eight foot shot from the baseline. Charlie Thelen is fouled on a putback and hits two free throws to trim the Pilgrim lead to 7-2 with 5:04 to go in the first quarter.

Christian misses a three point shot from the side. Elijah Ellis knocks the ball away from St. Patrick, but the Shamrocks recover. Elijah Ellis knocks the ball out of bounds; the Shamrocks get another possession. Baylor Brogan steals the ball for the Pilgrims. Christian misses a driving layup. St. Patrick misses a fast break layup. Benjamin Sambaer is fouled on a driving layup and hits two free throws to stretch the Christian lead to 9-2 with 3:54 remaining in the first quarter.

St. Patrick misses an eight foot shot in the lane. Charlie Thelen steals the ball for the Shamrocks. Landon Simpson passes to Charlie Thelen, who throws in a threeball from the top of the key for St. Patrick. Christian misses a three point shot from the side. Baylor Brogan gets the offensive rebound for the Pilgrims. Samuel Israel fakes, spins and hits a layup for Christian. St. Patrick misses a three point shot from the wing. Jerryd Scheurer, an eight grader, hits a putback to score his first varsity basket which trims the Christian lead to 11-7.

Judah Schafer hits a layup for Christian. Benjamin Sambaer steals the ball for the Pilgrims. David Hall hits a fast break layup for Christian. St. Patrick throws a pass out of bounds. Elijah Ellis passes to Tim Sullivan, who hits a three point shot from the side to push the Christian lead to 18-7.

St. Patrick misses a three point shot from the side. Alex Fedewa knocks the ball out of bounds; Christian retains possession. Jerryd Scheurer steals the ball for the Shamrocks. St. Patrick misfires on a triple try from the side. Elijah Ellis uses some fine dribbling to get free and hits a layup to give Christian a 20-7.

St. Patrick misses a three point shot from the side. The rebound goes out of bounds and St. Patrick gets the ball back. St. Patrick misses a three pointer from the side just before the buzzer.

After one quarter, Lansing Christian holds a 20-7 lead.

St. Patrick has the ball to open the second quarter. Tim Sullivan ties up the ball. The Possession Arrow is excited about his aggressive hustle and awards the ball to Christian. Elijah Ellis passes to Samuel Israel, who is cutting to the basket and hits a layup for the Pilgrims. He is fouled on the play and makes his free throw to push Christian to a 23-7 lead with 7:31 to play in the second quarter.

St. Patrick misses a three point shot from the corner. Christian reciprocates and misses a three point shot from the corner. Baylor Brogan dives and ties the ball up for Christian. The Possession Arrow was startled awake from its nap and missed the play. The ball is awarded to St. Patrick. St. Patrick throws the ball out of bounds.

Christian is fouled on a driving layup, but misses both its free throws. St. Patrick misses a three pointer near the top of the key. Christian misses a three pointer from the side. Jerryd Scheurer passes to Alex Fedewa, who is fouled on a three pointer from the corner. Alex Fedewa, hits one, two and three free throws to trim the Pilgrim lead to 23-10 with 5:33 remaining in the quarter.

Christian misfires on a threeball from the side. Judah Schafer gets his hand on the ball and causes a Shamrock traveling violation. Elijah Ellis passes to Benjamin Sambaer, who hits a three point shot from the side for Christian. The Shamrocks miss a twelve footer in the lane. Jerryd Scheurer gets his hand on the ball, but Christian is able to recover. Christian misses a six foot shot from the baseline. St. Patrick misses a banked runner from the side. Landon Simpson passes to Charlie Thelen, who hits a three point shot from the side. The Lansing Christian lead is at 26-13.

Christian misses a three point shot from the side. St. Patrick misses a twelve footer from the side of the lane. Christian misses a three point shot from the wing. Tim Sullivan pulls down an offensive rebound for the Pilgrims. David Hall passes to Benjamin Sambaer, who this a three point shot from the side for Christian. St. Patrick misses a fourteen footer off the dribble from the side of the lane. Christian misses a three pointer from the side. Brayden Simon drives and dishes the ball to Charlie Thelen, who hits a three point shot from the side for St. Patrick. Judah Schafer is fouled on a shot and hits one of his two free throws for the Pilgrims. With 36.9 seconds to play in the half, Christian has a 30-16 lead.

Samuel Israel ties up the ball. The Possession Arrow consults its board and awards the ball to Christian. Judah Schafer passes to Ethan Damesworth, who hits a three point shot from the top of the key at the buzzer for Christian.

Christian has a 33-16 lead at halftime.

While we are waiting for the halftime to expire, we can listen to this version of “Holly Jolly Christmas” from my You Tube Channel!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=msk3US5xeZc

St. Patrick has the ball to open the third quarter. Samuel Israel steals a Shamrock pass into the lane. Judah Schafer drives and hits a layup for Christian. Landon Simpson hits a three point shot from the wing for St. Patrick. Alex Fedewa blocks a Pilgrim layup. St. Patrick misses a sixteen foot shot from the side. Benjamin Sambaer hits a three point shot from the top of the key to boost Christian to a 38-19 lead.

Tim Sullivan ties up the ball. The Possession Arrow loves his hustle and awards the ball to Christian. Elijah Ellis throws a beautiful no look pass to Samuel Israel, who converts it into a Christian layup. Samuel Israel steals the ball for the Pilgrims. Christian misses a fast break layup. Jerryd Scheurer passes to Landon Simpson, who is cutting to the basket and hits a layup to trim the Christian lead to 40-21.

Christian misses a three point shot from the side. Ethan Damesworth gets the offensive rebound for the Pilgrims. Brady Leonard harasses a Christian dribbler and forces the Pilgrims to call timeout to avoid turning the ball over. Christian misses a three point shot from the top of the key. The rebound goes out of bounds and St. Patrick gets the ball. Jerryd Scheurer is fouled on a ten foot banked shot from the side and hits two free throws for St. Patrick. With 3:11 remaining in the third quarter, Christian has a 40-23 lead.

Christian misses a three point shot from the side; Samuel Israel hits a putback for the Pilgrims. Jerryd Scheurer rolls a pass to Brayden Simon inside; he is fouled on a layup and hits one of his two free throws for St. Patrick. Christian misses a fourteen foot shot in the lane. A Shamrock dribbler loses the ball out of bounds. Christian misses a jump shot from the free throw line. Brady Leonard passes to Brayden Simon, who is hits a layup to shave the Christian lead to 42-26.

Christian misses an eight foot banked shot in the lane. St. Patrick misses a threeball from the wing. Christian misses a threeball from the top of the key. Elijah Ellis steals the ball and hits a fast break layup for Christian. Brayden Simon drives and hits a layup for St. Patrick. He is fouled on the play, but misses his free throw. With 8.1 seconds to play in the quarter, Christian has a 44-28 lead.

Christian throws a long inbound pass out of bounds. Brady Leonard shots from past midcourt at the buzzer. His shot hits the back of the rim and bounces out.

With three quarters in the books, Lansing Christian has a 44-28 lead.

St. Patrick inbounds the ball to get the fourth quarter underway. The Shamrocks miss a three point shot from the side. Peyton Russman gets the offensive rebound for the Shamrocks. He drives and is fouled on a layup; he hits one of his two free throws. With 7:35 to play in the fourth quarter, Christian has a 44-29 lead.

Charlie Thelen dives to rebound the missed free throw for the Shamrocks and draws a foul. St. Patrick misses a three point shot from the side. Christian misses a driving layup. Benjamin Sambaer steals the ball for Christian. Alex Fedewa gets his hand on the ball; a Christian dribbler loses the ball out of bounds. Benjamin Sambaer knocks the ball out of bounds; St. Patrick retains possession. St. Patrick loses a pass out of bounds.

Landon Simpson knocks the ball away from Christian, but the Pilgrims recover. Christian misses a layup. St. Patrick misses a three pointer from the wing. Alex Fedewa gets the offensive rebound. St. Patrick misses a shot. Elijah Ellis passes to Samuel Israel, who hits a layup for Christian. Brayden Simon drives and is fouled on a layup. He hits one of his two free throws for the Shamrocks. Benjamin Sambaer drives and hits a layup for Christian. He is fouled on the play and hits his free throw to boost the Pilgrims to a 49-30 lead with 3:33 left in the game.

Mathias Nielsen guards a Shamrock pass receiver and causes him to lose the ball out of bounds. Christian misses a driving layup. Mathias Nielsen ties up the offensive rebound and the Possession Arrow decrees that Christian shall have the ball. Tim Sullivan fires up and hits a threeball from the corner to boost Christian to a 52-30 lead.

St. Patrick misses a three point shot from the side. Charlie Thelen gets the offensive rebound for the Shamrocks. St. Patrick is fouled and misses the first shot of a one and one free throw opportunity. Benjamin Sambaer drives and hits a layup for Christian. The Shamrocks misfire on a triple try from the side. Nathan Fears draws an offensive foul from the Pilgrims. Brayden Simon drives and banks in an eight foot shot for St. Patrick. Christian now has a 54-32 lead.

Christian misses a ten foot shot in the lane. Tim Sullivan gets the offensive rebound, drives and hits a layup for the Pilgrims. Elijah Ellis blocks a Shamrock threeball from the side. The loose ball goes out of bounds and the Shamrocks get another opportunity. Nathan Fears passes to a teammate who is fouled catching the lob and trying to shoot it; the Shamrocks miss both free throws. Christian misses a fast break layup. Payton Russman is fouled on a ten foot shot in the lane and hits one of his two free throws with 1.3 seconds left. Christian rebounds the ball and holds it for the final second.

Lansing Christian wins this game by a 56-33 score.

Freshman Charlie Thelen led St. Patrick with 11 points. Brayden Simon scored 8 points. Landon Simpson added 5 points. Jerryd Scheurer put in 4 points. Alex Fedewa had 3 points and Payton Russman tallied 2 points.

Benjamin Sambaer led the victorious Pilgrims with 17 points. Samuel Israel and Judah Schafer joined their teammate in double figures with 12 and 10 points respectively. Timothy Sullivan tossed in 8 points. Elijah Ellis scored 4 points. Ethan Damesworth had 3 points and David Hall added 2 points.