Junior Nick Tatu led Cagers in their victory over North Farmington Friday night, handing them their first loss in the OAA Red.
He scored six 3-pointers and a basket to put 22 points on the board in the 66-35 game.
“He shot the ball well,” said Clarkston Boys Varsity Basketball Head Coach Dan Fife.
The boys led throughout the entire game, posting 33 points during each half – a difference from their loss to Pontiac (67-51) on Jan. 18.
“Our North Farmington game was ten times different than it was on Tuesday,” said Fife. “As good as they were on Friday, they were just as bad against Pontiac. We showed them on the DVD how they played on Tuesday.”
Fife noticed the differences in the boys – mentally, physically, their work ethic and their energy.
Marcus Harder put ten points on the board and Matt Dellinger had nine points against the Raiders.
While the boys outscored every quarter while they were at North Farmington, in Pontiac they couldn’t grab the lead throughout the entire game.
Clarkston was only seven points behind going into halftime, a deficit they could come back from. Instead, Pontiac’s Jamarea Samples made three consecutive field goals at the beginning the second half and leading the Phoenix’s 16-4 run on the Wolves.
Tatu and Max Collins scored two 3-pointers in the game. Tatu contributed 12 points to the game and Collins had 11.
Mitch Baenziger put eight on the board.
The split week put the boys at a overall record 5-5 and 3-2 in OAA Red.
Fife explained the team is still finding their place and their identity.
“They struggle when they are out of their comfort zone and they don’t know how to get back int their comfort zone,” he added.
The boys had four practice sessions to get into the zone as they head to West Bloomfield on Thursday. The Lakers have only lost one game in the league so far.
“They have played us tough over the years,” said Fife. “But we have to look out for us rather than worry about them.”
The boys are back home next Tuesday.
JV begins at 5:30 p.m., varsity follows.