The Yellow Jackets come together right before tipoff. (photo via Amber Bonner)
After a disappointing loss to Battlefield in their first game back after winter break, Osbourn Park was looking for a way to forget it. The Yellow Jackets washed that bad taste out of their mouth with an ice cold cup of victory versus Gainesville Tuesday night, winning 74-57.
Much like against Battlefield, OP and Gainesville were neck and neck at first. OP wasn't able to break away, leading 15-14 at the end of the first quarter.
Senior guard Logan Dwyer led the team with 21 points. (photo via Amber Bonner)
OP looked to be gaining momentum halfway through the second quarter when things got bizarre. OP senior guard Daniel Salguero followed up a three-pointer with a slashing layup to put his team up 23-20. On the ensuing play, a Gainesville player was fouled while driving to the basket. Having just knocked down his first free throw, officials paused the game to go over the score. They removed 3 points from Osbourn Park's total, awarded Gainesville the first free throw which put them up 21-20, and drew the ire of the Yellow Jacket coaches and fans.
I spoke to OP head coach Jeremy Coleman about the incident and his players' handling of it.
"They responded instead of reacting. Reacting would have kept the scoring debacle on our minds and off the assignment at hand. We made the decision as a team that we would make those points up by turning up the heat on defense and making sure that the point swing didn't factor into the final score."
Sophomore guard Trey Terrell was second with 17 points and added 5 steals with 3 assists. (photo via Amber Bonner)
Senior guard Logan Dwyer also chimed in.
"The score confusion was annoying, but I just wanted the game to continue because we were in a groove and didn't want anything to stop that."
Dwyer was in a groove all night, leading Osbourn Park with 21 points on 8-14 shooting (2-3 from three) with three rebounds, three assists and two steals.
Play would resume, and a Daniel Salguero three gave OP a 27-24 lead, forcing Gainesville to call a timeout with 2:57 to go. With just over a minute to go, Logan Dwyer drew a charge to ensure OP would go into the half with the lead.
If there was any worry how they'd respond in the third quarter, OP left no doubts. Gainesville called another timeout at 5:22, but it wouldn't cool off the blue and yellow. Sophomore guard Trey Terrell found Salguero for another three-pointer, and on the next possession dropped a dime to junior big man Josh Okuadido to force the home team to call a timeout with 4:01 left in the third. Terrell would finish with 17 points, 5 steals and 3 assists. Ninety seconds later, OP increased the lead to nine and ending up outscoring the Cardinals 20-8.
OP only outscored Gainesville by two in the fourth, but ended up with a comfortable 17 point cushion. An unsung hero for the team was the energy of the bench, cheering on big plays and being an unofficial sixth man as Osbourn Park forced multiple turnovers.
Sophomore guard Tay Faison left an indelible mark on the game, filling the stat sheet with 10 points, 6 rebounds, 5 steals and one assist.
Sophomore Tay Faison finished with 10 points, 6 rebounds, 5 steals and one assist. (photo via Amber Bonner)
"Tonight was a great bounce back win," said Jeremy Coleman. "Last night at Battlefield presented adversity and an opportunity to learn and grow- or fold. My guys chose to learn and grow. Gainesville has some really good young talent. We relied on our experienced guards and aggressive play from our bigs to capitalize on Gainesville's mistakes. We now have two days of practice to prepare for a tough home game against Osbourn."
Osbourn Park would finish with four players in double figures (Dwyer's 21, Terrell's 17, Faison and Salguero's 10 apiece).
Logan Dwyer reflected on the game as a whole.
"After coming back from a long break, we didn't play our best basketball against Battlefield. That gave us fuel tonight going into this game. We weren't going to let it happen again. Our shots were dropping and we got comfortable with our game as the energy rose. Good basketball is fun basketball."
Osbourn Park moves to 6-4 on the season and 2-0 versus Gainesville. They return to the court Friday night at home for Senior Night when they host Osbourn (8-6) at 7:30 pm.
For more on Osbourn Park, keep it tuned here for recaps and player spotlights. Follow them on Twitter @OPJacketshoops.
Osbourn Park would like to thank their sponsors for the 2021-2022 season:
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