Osbourn Park used homecourt advantage to beat Unity Reed in opening round action on Thursday night.
(photo via Amber Bonner)
Osbourn Park's regular season ended on a sour note last Monday when they lost to Unity Reed, 79-68. They looked to right the ship Thursday in opening round playoff action and did just that, winning 69-56 at home.
Jeremy Coleman's Yellow Jackets were aggressive from the start. Not even thirty seconds in, senior guard Logan Dwyer completed a three-point play. Dwyer would later find freshman guard RJ Jones for a three-pointer to put OP ahead 11-2, forcing a Unity Reed timeout with 3:32 left in the first quarter.
Osbourn Park's home crowd brought the energy all night long, including support from the the 19-1 girl's team.
(photos via Amber Bonner)
Sophomore guard Tay Faison returned after a one game absence and was a factor all night for Osbourn Park on both sides of the ball. Unfortunately for OP fans, he'd collect a technical foul early on after an interaction with a Unity Reed player. Senior Lions guard Sean Scott would hit both free throws to make it 11-4. Unity Reed's first eight points would all be off free throws.
With just over a minute to go, senior guard Daniel Salguero would find freshman guard Jalen Proctor for a three-pointer to go ahead 18-10. The quarter would end with the home team in control, up 20-10.
Proctor would return the favor early in the second quarter when he assisted on a Salguero three. Junior center Josh Okuadido would build off that momentum with a baseline dunk to push the lead to 25-12. Unity Reed would burn another timeout.
Things would not improve for the Lions as Logan Dwyer timed his steal perfectly off an errant pass, dashing to the other end for two points and giving OP a 15 point lead, 27-12. OP's three-point barrage would continue via Proctor and Salguero to give the Yellow Jackets a 20 point lead at 36-16. They'd shoot 8-17 (47%) from beyond the arc.
Ball movement was a key ingredient all night long, a great display being when Salguero stole the ball, passed to junior big man Cam Portis who found Logan Dwyer for a layup giving OP a 22 point lead. Dwyer realized the significance heading into the night, and even more after the win.
"I thought we came out with great energy and maintained it throughout the game. We played a great team game with lots of people scoring. Overall it was a great way to start off the playoffs and even sweeter as a senior because I want to leave the program right and I think we are on the path to do that." Dwyer would also lead OP in assists with 6.
Those Logan mentioned scoring included himself (11) and four other players in double figures: Tay Faison (11), Daniel Salguero (10), Okuadido (17), Proctor (10).
Portis would pick up his second foul when he'd collide with Sean Scott later in the half. Scott would stay down and come out of the game, but gather himself to return soon after. Osbourn Park would go into the half up 41-23.
The Yellow Jackets would have five players score in double digits: Josh Okuadido, Logan Dwyer, Tay Faison, Daniel Salguero and Jalen Proctor. (photos via Amber Bonner)
OP would find more success early in the third and extend the game to their largest lead of the night of 24 points at 52-28 following two Josh Okuadido free-throws. OP would take advantage of the charity stripe, shooting 11-14 (78%) on the night.
They would then hit their roughest stretch of the night as Unity Reed went on an impressive 15-3 run to get within 12 points at 55-43 following a jumper from Sean Scott and a three-pointer from junior forward Charles Pargo. Yellow Jackets head coach Jeremy Coleman would call a timeout with 3:54 left in the game.
Immediately after the timeout, sophomore guard Trey Terrell would pass it to Tay Faison who connected with Okuadido for another dunk. Okuadido would have a double-double that included 17 points and 10 rebounds. He'd go 5-7 from the free throw line and have a season-high 6 blocks. He'd dazzle on the baseline all night long with a variety of dunks and even a reverse layup for good measure. I spoke to Okuadido after the game.
"Our loss against Unity Reed shouldn't have happened. We had to set the record straight when we came out to play them. I've been putting in more work on my movement on offense and it's been paying off in recent games."
He continued, "I want us to have the same energy tonight on Monday when we face Patriot and do our thing."
Josh Okuadido led the Yellow Jackets with 17 points, 10 rebounds and 6 blocks.
(photos via Amber Bonner)
I caught up with head coach Jeremy Coleman after the game.
"Tonight we came out with lots of energy and were determined to limit their open looks. We knew we'd have to rebound the ball well. Josh was tremendous in leading the effort in all facets of the game. Cam Portis also provided solid defense. Jalen Proctor hit some key long balls off the bench, too. This is a great victory for these young men and the program and I'm proud to be their coach."
Osbourn Park gets a few days off prior to their semi-finals matchup versus 20-0 Patriot on the Pioneers court. They are 0-2 against them on the season, last playing on January 24th. Tipoff is at 7 pm.
For more on Osbourn Park basketball, keep it tuned here and follow them on Twitter @OPJackethoops.
Osbourn Park would like to thank their sponsors for the 2021-2022 season:
USMC Memoriam - Joseph Dwyer
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