Rod Adrian shared his thoughts after Briercrest men's basketball games this weekend:

Friday, January 17; Briercrest 85 - Augustana 77

A great team effort tonight to earn our 8^th win of the season.  Player of the Game, Brandon Friesen led the team in scoring with 17 points, and 11 rebounds and was our anchor on the defensive end.  Christian Sacoman and James Wohlgeschaffen both ended with 16 points and Ryan Fox added 11 points.  Josiah Cockrill grabbed 11 rebounds, and we had 9 players contribute points on the score sheet.  As a team we shot 48% FG and had a rebounding advantage nabbing 41 boards.  We turned the ball over 23 times – a stat line that we will continue to work on.  Putting it all together we scored .96 points per possession (goal >.9), and edged out our opponent with a +7%EFG.  Overall a good game, and for those who saw it enjoyed a close contest throughout the evening with the Clippers gaining the lead early in the first quarter and never gave it up.

Saturday, January 18; Briercrest 115 - Lakeland 122 (OT)

When the roller coaster came to a stop we got off, and realized that it wasn’t as much fun as we were hoping for.  This game saw us go ahead by 24 points in the 2^nd quarter and go down by as many as 12 late in the game.  Justin Wolverton knocked down a transition, pull up 3-pointer with seconds to go in regulation that gave us “new life” to go into overtime.  But we allowed Lakeland to shoot 58% in the second half which proved to be too much – usually I like roller coasters, but as a team we will need to learn how to enjoy the ride without throwing up on ourselves (sorry if that’s too graphic of an illustration). 

Once again Brandon Friesen was Player of the Game with 26 points, going 10-14 from the field.  Christian Sacoman led the team in scoring with 26 points.  James Wohlgeschaffen had a solid night with 18 points, 10 rebounds, and 8 assists.  Josiah Cockrill also had a double – double with 17 points, and 10 rebounds.  The best shooting performance came from freshman, Ryan Penner, who went 4-4 from 3-point, and finished with 16 points.  Ryan Fox also chipped in with 11 points, and Justin Wolverton dished for 6 assists.  Our points per possession was 1.09!!!  The ride was pretty good at times, and I caught myself with hands up yelling in joy.  But the low points came too, as we turned the ball over 26 times, and allowed Lakeland to shoot 36 FT (they made 33) – and that was the game.  Ride over.  We won almost every category, except for the most important one – OUR EMOTIONAL CATEGORY. (tricked you, you thought it was the score – all roller coasters are great if you choose to enjoy them – we are going to work on choosing JOY as a Team).  Our focus this weekend was Romans 12:1-5, which draws us to focus on sacrifice, right thinking, and recognition that we are one body in Christ – valuable verses for whatever you do.

What I love about roller coasters is that there is always another one to ride and enjoy – that is the key – ENJOY the Ride.  Next up is top ranked in the ACAC, Red Deer, and it should be a great ride and I can’t wait!