Braymer loses to Hardin in District 13 Championship
As I am writing this, I am sorry to say it will be my last article about basketball for this year. Unfortunately, Braymer lost its game against Hardin. The season for the Cats came to a surprising abrupt end. That being said here is the summary.
Braymer traveled to Norborne to play in the District 13 championship game against Hardin. As usual the Bobcats came out on fire and went ahead 8 to 0 with great defensive play and converting on the offensive end. Looked like things were going their way. Hardin finally scored with 3:30 left in the quarter. With a couple missed shots on the Cats end, at the end of one, Braymer only led by 4, 10 to 6.
Braymer changed up its defense and Layman answered with a long 3. He came down and shot another 3 and put the Bulldogs ahead by 2. The Bulldogs certainly shifted the game as their defense held the Bobcats to 3 points in the second quarter. Braymer went into the locker room down 18 to 13.
Braymer came out after half on a mission and promptly scored. Hardin answered with a 3 on their end. Miller was fouled and put in 2 free-throws. Hardin answered with an old-fashioned 3 on the other end. Miller swished a 3 to make the score 20 to 24. Dudley stole the ball and O'Dell had a put back to pull the Cats within 2. Layman decided it was time to talk to his boys. Braymer was on a hunt. Hardin came out of the huddle and swished a 3 and then got the defensive rebound and made the basket to pull ahead 29 to 22. O'Dell wasn't giving up and came down and swished a 3. Kugler put in 2 to put the Bulldogs back up 31 to 25. O'Dell put in another 3. Gates had to sit for awhile with his 3rd foul. Hardin turned the ball over and O'Dell capitalized with a swished 3 at the buzzer to tie the Cats up with the Bulldogs 31 to 31.
Hardin had the ball to begin the 4th and went down and put in a lay-up. O'Dell answered with a lay-up on the Cats end. Kugler put it in and then Shoe threw in 2 free-throws to keep the score tied 35 to 35. Layman's free-throw put Hardin ahead by 1. O'Dell put the Cats ahead by 1 with a lay-up, 37 to 36. O'Dell was fouled on the next possession and hit one to give Braymer its last lead 38 to 36. Hardin tied the game with 33.8 seconds left in the game. Kugler got fouled and hit a free-throw to put the Bulldogs up 39 to 38 with 12.7 seconds left. Braymer was unable to convert on the other end.
Good defensive game by both teams. Congratulation to the Bulldogs and good luck in your next game. O'Dell had 25 points, 9 rebounds, 3 steals and 1 assist. Miller had 9 points, 2 rebounds, 3 steals, 2 blocks and 1 deflection. Dudley had 2 points, 7 rebounds, 2 steals, 1 assist and 1 deflection. Shoe had 2 points, 5 rebounds and 1 steal. Gates had 2 rebounds and 2 steals. K. O'Dell had 1 rebound and 1 steal. Rogers had 1 steal.
This reporter would be amiss if Logan O'Dell was not recognized for the amazing ball player he is and truly believe that this young man will be missed next year. O'Dell leads the team in a way that everyone can be proud of and I'm sure his Mom and Dad are. He not only lead most games in scoring, but he also had many assist. He guided his team mates and you could see him teaching on the floor. He never got angry with his younger teammates and was always there to give them a high five for a job well done. He helped other players up off the floor and was friendly to all he played with. He never gave up in any of the games and played his hardest for the whole game. His statistics prove what kind of player he has been for the last four years. From his Coach, Logan finished his high school career with 1816 points, 588 rebounds, 465 assists and 306 steals. Over his 4 years playing the team was 88-24 with 2 conference championships and 1 district title. Quite a career to be proud of young man. Good luck to you and keep being the great example you are!
