Falcons lose three to start season 1-5
The Abbotsford boys basketball team went 0-3 over the past week as they tried to weather a brutal opening sequence of games to their 2022-23 schedule.
Newman Catholic, 77-37
The Falcons rounded out a tough opening schedule with a trip to Newman Catholic. The Fighting Cardinals were too much for the visiting Abbotsford squad to handle and the home team took home the victory, 77-37.
Almost anyway you slice it, Newman Catholic held the advantage over the Falcons in this Marawood-North/ South crossover game. The Fighting Cardinals grabbed significantly more rebounds, had double the assists, and made less turnovers than Abbotsford. This ultimately led to the rather lopsided scoreboard at the end of the evening.
The Falcons did shoot more free throws than their counterparts, going 14-25 from the line, compared to Newman’s 13 attempts.
While the Cards’ top offensive option, senior guard Mason Prey, only played 11 minutes, he still scored 12 points, which was tied for second on the team. With Prey largely on the bench, the Falcons instead had their hands full with Isaac Seidel and Conner Krach. Seidel sunk four shots from beyond the three-point line and ended the game with 25 points. Meanwhile, Krach was a menace on the glass, pulling down 16 boards and scoring 12 points.
Adam Diedrich had a solid performance, leading the team in points and rebounds, ending the game with 10 and eight respectively. He also was 2-4 from three-point range. Brandon Diedrich had seven points and Esteban Gomez had four of the team’s seven assists while also contributing six points.
Also scoring for the Falcons were AJ Brodhagen with four, Andres Bautista and Gatlin Faber with three and Evan Reis and Jacob Hirsch with two.
Cadott, 53-41
A strong start at home was not enough to carry Abbotsford past Cadott this past Thursday, as they fell to the Hornets 53-41.
The Falcons came out of the gates swinging, carrying a lead through a vast majority of the first half. A combination of Adam Diedrich down low and Esteban Gomez from the free throw line had allowed the home team to hold a seven-point advantage as late as six minutes left in the period. If things continued as they had for the first 12 minutes of the game, it seemed like a real possibility that Abbotsford could deal the Hornets their first loss of the season. The offense was scoring points and they had kept Cadott’s Teegan Ritter in check.
However, it was at this point in the game that the Hornets changed things up on the defensive end. They switched from a man-to-man look to a 2-3 zone and the Falcons could not find the answers for it. After scoring 19 points in the first 12 minutes, Abbotsford would only score five in the final six and Cadott would take the lead heading into the locker room, going on a 12-3 run to end the half.
The Falcons would continue to struggle offensively against the zone defense in the second period. Meanwhile, after struggling early, Cadott seemed to have found its footing and expanded its lead significantly. Some late game threes from Gomez and Brandon Diedrich cut that lead down to seven with under two minutes to play, but Abbotsford would not get any closer than that, ultimately falling 53-41.
Gomez had 13 points and three assists to lead the Falcons. Adam and Brandon Diedrich both had 10 points and led the team in rebounds with eight and seven respectively. AJ Brodhagen contributed six points and Evan Reis had two points, five rebounds, and led the team with two steals.
Pittsville, 59-22
The Falcons were only able to muster 22 points on the road in a non-conference matchup against Pittsville. The Panthers dominated both sides of the court, winning 59-22 and handing Abbotsford their third loss of the season.
The game played last week Tuesday, Dec. 6 was the Falcons’ fourth in as many weekdays. With no time for practice or to make any real adjustments from their previous games, the Abbotsford squad had a tough offensive evening. 26 turnovers combined with shooting just 27 percent from the field resulted in the lopsided score. The first half was especially difficult for the Falcons, where they managed just seven points over the first 18 minutes of play.
Pittsville, meanwhile, had no such offensive woes. They shot 23-57 from the field and 6-13 from beyond the threepoint line and saw similar production in both halves, scoring 29 points in the first and 30 in the second. The Falcons seemed to have no answer for senior Samuel Bowden, who ended the game with 19 points and 11 rebounds.
Adam Diedrich led Abbotsford in both points and rebounds, ending the game with seven points and six boards. Blake Bargender ended the game with six points and four rebounds while Brandon Diedrich added five points and five rebounds. Esteban Gomez contributed four points and led the team in assists with two.
With these opening two weeks behind them, the Falcons will finally have a chance to regroup and evaluate their play. They have a couple practices to get ready for their next opponent, Marawood-North foe Prentice, a luxury that Abbotsford has not been afforded thus far. The Buccaneers are coming off their first Marawood-North victory over Phillips and will likely be looking to continue that success when they come into Abbotsford on Friday night. Meanwhile, the Falcons will be eyeing their first conference win in the matchup. The game is slated for a 7:15 p.m. start.
LAST SECOND SHOT - Esteban Gomez trains in on the basket just beyond half court before making a last second heave before the end of the half. While the desperation shot would not go in, Gomez scored 13 points to lead the Falcons against Cadott.STAFF PHOTOS/NATHANIEL UNDERWOOD
SMOOTH SHOT -AJ Brodhagen elevated over his defender to hit a jumper in the first half against Cadott. He would finish the game with six points.
