Panthers' rally falls short against Axeman
Kai Bennett (right) started the 2023-24 hoops campaign with 14 points and 10 boards for the Panthers.
/ Photo by L.E. Masterson
A fourth-period rally fell short Friday, Dec. 1, as visiting South Eugene held on for a 68-64 win over the Central High varsity boys basketball team.
With 11 seconds left, the Panthers had a chance to tie. But lost control of the ball, and thus the game.
Friday was the season opener for both teams, and marked the debut of Tyler Allen, the Panthers’ new head coach.
“I was happy with the team’s energy overall,” said Allen. “We have a lot to improve upon. But every mistake we make is correctable, if we focus on the details in practice.”
Foul shooting will certainly be a point of emphasis.
“Our free-throw shooting was atrocious, to put it lightly,” Allen added. “You do the math … lose by four and miss 15 free throws.”
Tyler Allen (center) is the new coach of the Central High School varsity boys basketball team. The Panthers lost to South Eugene on Friday. It was the season opener for both teams.
/ Photo by L.E. Masterson
Senior post Kai Bennett agreed.
“Zero free throws made, and in a close game, just horrible,” he said in assessing his own stats.
More consistent play from the Panthers sparked the comeback bid.
“Our rally was a result of getting to shooters faster and contesting their shots,” said Allen. “We also did a better job on our offense attacking the rim and not settling for outside looks.”
First three periods aside, the game showed the Panthers what they will need to do moving forward.
“The fourth quarter was a really good quarter for us. I think if we can do that for a whole game, we’ll be competitive with the toughest teams in our league,” said senior guard Esteban Chavez.
Central outscored the Axemen by 11 points in the second half, and by nine points in the fourth period.
“We just picked up our intensity, especially on defense,” said Chavez of the improved play. “Just doing a better job of locking down number 5 (Trey Saunders).”
Saunders, who led all scorers with 26 points, netted two points over the final 10 minutes.
“You do the math … lose by four and miss 15 free throws.”
Chavez paced the Panther attack with 19 points. While Bennett added 14, Jack Holestine 12 and Andrew Eames 10 points.
Bennett also tallied 10 rebounds. Eames added two blocks and a steal.
“As a team, I feel like we have a lot to improve on, and me personally, I have a lot to improve on. It’s a journey,” added Bennett.
The journey continues Friday against visiting Canby. It will be a close one, if OSAA’s prognosticators are accurate, as the Cougars and Panthers are both ranked 18th in 5A. Game time is 7 p.m.
Allen is well known to local prep basketball fans. A Dallas High School graduate, he worked his way through the coaching ranks, landing the lead position at South Salem for eight years, and at Silverton for one year.
Dean Sanderson, who coached Central last season, is an assistant coach at West Salem.
Last year, Central was third in conference and lost to LaSalle Prep in the first round of the state playoffs. Chase Nelson, one of the leaders of that team, has since graduated.
Eleven seniors are on the Panthers' roster, including five players who saw varsity action last year: Chavez (second team all-conference), Bennett, Eames, Matt Quinn and Andrew Taufa’asau.
(Publisher's note: This article originally appeared in the Polk County Itemizer-Observer. The version that appears here has been edited.)
