Dogies struggle against the ‘Blazers

Bigger, faster, stronger. 
That is what the Dogies were up against in their home opener against the Torrington Trailblazers Friday in the Dogie Dome. After a decent start to the basketball game by Newcastle, the ‘Blazers lit it up from beyond the arc and their full court pressure gave head coach Allen Von Eye’s rookie crew fits, with the combination ultimately leading to a 17-65 loss for the Dogies. 
“They are in a very similar boat to us as far as players coming off the bench,” Von Eye began. “They have two players who are veteran varsity players and another who really started to play a bigger role toward the end of last season, but those two have been important for a long time. It was pretty evident from the start that they are bigger, faster and stronger than we are.”
Torrington didn’t take a shot from anywhere but beyond the three-point line for the two and a half minutes of the contest, and though they didn’t hit any of those initial attempts, they ended the contest going 13-30 from beyond the arc. 
“They didn’t look anything like we saw previously this year, and they shot really well on Friday,” Von Eye said. “From what we saw on film, they hadn’t shot the ball overly well, so that was not something we had anticipated.”
The Dogies actually put the first point on the scoreboard in the first quarter with a made free-throw by Quint Perino. Shortly thereafter, the ‘Blazers hit back-to-back threes to take the 6-1 lead, but the Dogies came back to tie things up at 6-6 about halfway through the first frame of play.
“I liked the way we came out,” Von Eye said. “We were pretty solid, and we did some good things, and attacked the basket pretty well.”
However, the full court pressure applied by Torrington began to affect Newcastle, and the ‘Blazers used a string of forced turnovers to pull out to a 12-6 lead by the end of one, then a 27-7 lead by the halftime break.
“Their pressure wasn’t anything fancy, and was basically the same thing we have run forever, but it just made us start to rush things and we got antsy,” Von Eye determined. “When we watched it back, almost every time we turned it over, we had open options to pass the ball, but we just couldn’t see it.”
Von Eye and his team made some adjustments during the halftime break, and the Dogies looked much better in the second half. Unfortunately, one quarter of lost offense presented the Dogies with a difficult uphill climb in the final two quarters of play.
The ‘Blazers shot 43% from three when they came in, averaging only 26% from beyond the arc. They also played well off the bounce, according to Von Eye.
“They really attacked and penetrated very well, and again, were not what we expected,” Von Eye admitted. “Credit to them, I was impressed with how they played, given what we had seen on film so far this season.”
It was the first 3A action of the season for the Dogies, so they now have a taste of the level they need to get to by the time post-season play comes around. 
“It gives us another opportunity for growth,” Von Eye said.”We can’t simulate that kind of situation in practice, so we are really emphasizing the fact that the guys have to put themselves there with mental simulations in order to be ready.”
Only two Dogies ended up in the scoring column for the Dogies. Perino ended up leading with nine points, and Zander White was close behind with eight.
The Dogies have two games this week in which they have the opportunity to learn and grow, as they are facing a couple of tough teams, however neither of them are conference contests.
On Thursday, the squad will head to Wright to take on a tough, veteran 2A team with title aspirations, then on Saturday they will go to Rapid City to face Rapid
City Christian, also a formidable opponent in Class A of South Dakota. 
Tip-off for Thursday’s game is 7:30 in Wright, and on Saturday it is scheduled for 1:30 at Rapid City Christian High School.