Canby Herald Online

Canby 64, Newberg 59: Cougars stun No. 4 Newberg in upset

Canby holds on in fourth quarter to post second straight victory

• By: Alex Tam  
• Published: 2/5/2010 1:46:29 AM

Photo By: Alex TamBoys basketball: Canby 64, Newberg 59
The Canby boys basketball team celebrates following Tuesday's 64-59 upset victory over No. 4 Newberg at Newberg High School, marking the Cougars' first road victory and first winning streak this season.

NEWBERG – It was just one week ago when the Canby boys basketball team sat frustrated, confused and searching for answers after a disheartening 15-point loss to Tualatin.

One week later, things have completely turned around.

The Cougars showed poise and confidence down the stretch to pull off an impressive 64-59 upset victory over No. 4 Newberg on Tuesday night at Newberg High School.

The win follows a 62-54 victory over McMinnville last week, signaling two wins over the top two teams in the Pacific Conference – a remarkable feat after Canby had lost six of its previous seven games.

“Confidence is s big thing,” said junior Justin Langford, who had a game-high 22 points. “We came in for our first few games of the season and shot bricks – we were building houses. But we finally came out and people started hitting some shots and it just kind of triggered. Everyone started feeding off of everyone else.”

The win was also the Cougars’ first victory on the road this season, and marked their first winning streak of the season.

It was as jovial of a mood inside Canby’s locker room after the game, and coach Dane Walker said he couldn’t be more pleased with his team after saying all season long how much this group deserved to taste some success.

“I feel great, and to be honest, I think I told you after the Tualatin game that I take responsibility for a lot of what happened during that game,” Walker said. “And the kids, these are great kids that do what I ask them to do and play hard every night.

“You need a perfect game to play against those guys and we got one. And to get one on the road makes it even better.”

Newberg had its seven-game winning streak snapped, and saw its perfect 7-0 league record tarnished.

The Tigers looked like they would run away early on when they took a 7-0 lead less than two minutes into the game. However, Canby rallied to finish the first quarter on a 14-5 run, and led throughout the first half.

“They kind of scared us a bit, coming right off the bat with a 7-0 run but we didn’t give up,” Langford said. “And in the end, we made the right plays and guys hit shots.”

With the Cougars facing a 47-46 deficit with 3:56 left in the game, they came up with two of the biggest shots of the season.

Senior Ryan Wall and sophomore Andrew Evans nailed back-to-back 3-pointers to give Canby a 52-47 lead with two minutes left that had the Tigers and their crowd stunned.

“Sometimes it’s hard when you get your number called,” said Walker, who explained the play was for Wall to get a 3-point shot. “We’re playing to win that game and sometimes, those are the hardest shots to hit. And to be honest, we showed some composure and we showed some grit right there.”

Newberg senior guard Jacob Graham tried keeping his team in the game, scoring 11 of his team-high 16 points in the fourth. Graham responded with a 3-pointer to cut Canby’s lead to 52-50 with 1:50 to go, but that was as close as the Tigers got.

The Cougars sealed the game at the free-throw line, making 17 of 19 attempts in the fourth quarter alone.

They were 20 of 23 for the game – all coming in the second half.

Canby also held Newberg senior A.J. Grant – a returning all-league first-team selection – to just 10 points after he had averaged 21.4 points per game during the Tigers’ winning streak.

“Grant’s a great player, give him props all day,” Langford said. “But once we got the ball out of his hands and made the other guys make plays – and they did make some plays – but you take the ball out of their best player’s hands and you have a chance, and we did very well.”

Wall had 13 points for Canby, and seniors Josh Yoder and Oscar Zamora each had 11.

Senior Brett Vernon had 13 points for Newberg, and senior Jordan Howell added 11.

Canby (5-12 overall, 3-5 Pacific) now sits just one game behind fourth-place Tigard (8-9, 4-4) heading into Friday’s games. The Cougars played at Forest Grove on Friday night but results were not available at press time.

Canby is also just two games behind McMinnville (10-7, 5-3) and Tualatin (10-7, 5-3) for second place.

“We want to put a monkey wrench into this thing,” Walker said. “We just want to be in the conversation to get into the playoffs. Our goal is to get into the playoffs and if we can get there, I’d be happy because I think these guys deserve it.”

Up next, the Cougars host Tigard on Tuesday at 7:45 p.m. and host Tualatin on Friday at 7:15 p.m.

	1st	2nd	3rd	4th	Final
Canby Cougars	14	14	13	23	64
Newberg Tigers	12	16	12	19	59

Canby – Justin Langford 22, Ryan Wall 13, Josh Yoder 11, Oscar Zamora 11, Evans 5, Anderson 2, Kuznetsov, Walker
Newberg – Jacob Graham 16, Brett Vernon 13, Jordan Howell 11, AJ Grant 10, Hunter-Brown 7, Danielson 2, Adams
Free throws: Canby 20-23 (86.9 percent), Newberg 8-11 (72.7 percent)

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