Photo by Terry MillsSenior Austin Olma of Tonasket tries to make a shot from under the hoop in Tonasket’s game against Lake Roosevelt on Tuesday, Jan. 13. The Tigers lost, 66-39. Also shown are freshman Ty Egbert of Lake Roosevelt, senior Bryce Johnson (#

LEAVENWORTH – The Tonasket boys’ basketball team ended a hard week in Leavenworth on Saturday, Jan. 17 with a loss, 52-34.

The week began on Tuesday, Jan. 13 when the Tigers played at home against Lake Roosevelt, losing 66-39.

“In the first half, we played really tentative,” Glenn Braman, head coach, said. “I think we only shot the ball 16 times but we made 14 of those shots. Then we came out more evenly in the second half. Overall, I thought the effort was pretty good. Lake Roosevelt is really quick and they’ve got a lot of athleticism.”

Senior Austin Olma led the team in scoring with 10 points while sophomore Corbin Moser and junior Terrell Cross each had seven. Senior Jeramy Dellinger led the team in total rebounds with six and total steals with two. Cross had seven rebounds and senior Michael Hulse had three assists.

The week continued on Thursday, Jan. 15 when the Tigers played a make-up game against Kettle Falls at home, losing 62-43.

“The first half was better than the second half,” Braman said. “We’re slowing the tempo down and it was where we wanted it. Then Kettle Falls just made a lot of shots in the second half, they shot 52 percent and we were not ready for that tempo in the second half. That changed our game plan significantly.”

Dellinger led the team in scoring with 13 points while Olma and sophomore Colton Ayers each had eight points. Hulse led in assists with seven and in steals with three. Olma led in total rebounds with eight while Dellinger and Ayers each had seven rebounds.

On Saturday, Hulse led the team in scoring against Cascade with 12 points while Olma had eight. Ayers led in total rebounds with seven and Dellinger had seven rebounds.

“Cascade is the most athletic team in our league,” Braman said. “In the first quarter, we were hanging right with them but then we got bit by the turnover bug and they made about 10 shots going into half-time and another 10 into the third quarter, so that put us in about a 20-point hole. Defensively, the effort was there, but a lot of our defensive situations we didn’t have the advantage in because we were in a three on two or a three on one situation and in those situations, the other team will score 95 percent of the time.”

On Saturday, Jan. 24, the Tigers play away against Brewster for the third time and Braman said he’s hoping the team shows some improvement.

“I hope that no matter the outcome of the game, we can see some improvement,” he said. “They’re still a really tough match-up for us. They don’t take bad shots and they’re a very fundamentally sound team. It’s hard to beat people who don’t make a lot of mistakes. It’s fun to play games like that, though, and take on the challenge.”

Braman said the Tigers (0-6 in league, 2-10 overall) are facing a frustrating situation for both players and coaches.

“I think there’s a lot to be said about facing a tough situation and sticking with it,” he added. “Life’s full of challenges and that’s why I love coaching so much because hopefully I’m teaching these boys some life-long lessons they can look back on in the future.”