East Oregonian
IRRIGON — The good vibes surrounding the Weston-McEwen boys’ basketball team over the last month haven’t disappeared yet. The TigerScots finished up their regular-season slate on Saturday with their 10th straight win, this one a 66-40 showing in Irrigon.
Weston-McEwen (18-5, 13-1 BMC) will be the top seed in the Blue Mountain Conference’s district tournament in Pendleton this weekend while Irrigon also gets an invite, their first of the school’s modern era of athletics. The Knights (14-9, 9-5 BMC) are the fourth-place team.
The TigerScots had already wrapped up the regular-season title by beating Stanfield on Friday, but you wouldn’t get that from the way the boys took the court against the Knights, Weston-McEwen coach Brian Pickard said.
Weston-McEwen senior Dallas Reich provided the fire power for the TigerScots on Saturday, dropping a cool 30 points on the Knights. That included four 3-pointers and a 6-for-6 night from the free throw line.
Everything was going Reich’s way and if the ball left his shooting hand for the hoop, more often than not it landed home. That included a pair of drives to the basket just minutes apart that were crashed by hard fouls, only to see the ball go in anyway. Reich completed each three-point play with a free throw.
Even a near-full court buzzer beater shot to end the first half threaded through the hoop.
“Dallas is by far the best player in the league and he showed it (Saturday),” Irrigon coach Jake McElligott. “Hats off to that guy; he’s a great player.
“And I’m glad to see him go,” McElligott said with a laugh of the senior.
Reich said he’s already looking forward to the TigerScots’ next game, which could be his last in a Weston-McEwen uniform if they lose.
“Now we only have five games left between us and (a state championship),” Reich said.
Fellow TigerScots Riley Sederberg and Ron Terjeson had good nights scoring also, with 13 and 10 points respectively. Irrigon’s top performer was Ernesto Aguilera with 10 points, but the Knights struggled from the field. As a team, Irrigon shot under 30 percent.
Irrigon will play BMC’s No. 3 team Stanfield (16-8, 10-4 BMC) Friday night at the Pendleton Convention Center. Weston-McEwen gets a bye until Saturday.