It was a barn burner in Three Hills as the St. Anthony’s Sabres and Prairie Christian Academy duelled in overtime Wednesday night.
The game was close from the tip-off, with team trading baskets for most of the first half. The Sabres had a one point lead heading into the break, but Prairie was able to hit two straight three pointers to lead 31-25 at the half.
The Sabres won the third quarter and headed into the stretch with a six point cushion. They led for most of the fourth quarter, but Prairie chipped away and took a 54-52 lead with 10.8 seconds left. A short jumper from Alex Cliche tied the game prompting the extra period.
The Sabres were not able to get past a last minute defensive effort by Prairie, who won 68-59. Cliche had 27 points in the effort, Brandon Gruber had 19 points and owned the glass with 15 rebounds.
The team was able to take some positives from the game. They were able to show composure in a close game, but some issues that were identified that need to be worked on, including ball control. The Sabres turned the ball over 28 times in the 40-minute game. Sloppy ball handling and careless passing allowed Prairie to capitalize. Even with these issues the Sabres were able to keep the game close with strong rebounding and under the basket defence.
The week has only just begun for the Sabres. Yesterday (Thursday, February 3), the team was in Calgary to start tournament play at Prairie Christian Academy versus École de la Rose Sauvage. Tournament play continues Friday.
