Bruin Boys Basketball and new head coach Luke Beaman, got their first win of the 2023/24 season in a well earned, hard fought battle with their Hwy. 101 rival, as the Bruins hosted the Gold Beach Panthers Friday night.
If the first two games of the early season are any indication, this team will be identified by its scrappy hard nosed style of hustle basketball, creating opportunity off of constant pressure and running off of mistakes.
The Bruins came out cold to start the first quarter, as Gold Beach used fundamentals to jump out early on the Bruin defense scoring 9 points, as they held the cold shooting Bruin offense to just 1 point in the first four minutes of play. But the Bruins started to claw their way back into the game cutting the lead in half as the Panthers took a 8-15 lead at the end of the first.
The Bruins worked to close the gap in the second period, getting the Bruins within 5 midway through the period and took their first lead of the game with 1:40 left in the second period. Both teams traded baskets to close the half as the Bruins took a 24-23 lead into the half-time break.
In the third period, the Bruin defense continued to pressure off of missed shots. slowing the Gold Beach Panthers offense with out actually expending the energy of a full court press, adding 20 points of offense while holding the Panthers to just 15 points to take a 44-38 lead into the fourth.
Gold Beach fought back in the fourth, closing the scoring gap to with in 2 points midway through the period, tying the score with less than a minute to play. Both teams missed opportunities to take a late lead, but a foul on senior forward Ethan Orman, #33, as he drove to the basket with seconds left, sent Orman to the line where he hit 1 of 2, giving the Bruins the 56-55 win.
The Bruins will be on the road to North Bend Monday, for their third preseason game with tip-off scheduled for 6:00pm.
