Millers get first league victory over Marshfield

By Maren Fawkes
For the Beacon

The crowd was on its feet as the Springfield Millers varsity boys used good old fashioned hustle and defense to squeak out a win against the Marshfield Pirates. The game came down to the wire with the deciding points scored in the last 40 seconds.
Marshfield won the opening tip-off and took a quick eight point lead by hitting a few open shots. The Pirates tight zone defense had the Millers off to a shaky start by forcing them to shoot from the perimeter. The Millers reaction to the offensive on-slot of the Pirates was to pressure the ball from the in-bound point with an aggressive full-court press. Through determination and pressure the Millers were able to quash the early first quarter scoring threat put on by the Pirates. Successfully slowing the scoring by the Pirates, the Millers fought back to take the lead by the end of the first half by a single point.
“We missed some easy shots in the first half,” Springfield coach Dusty Auxier said.
Despite the misses the Millers were able to keep the game close and to build momentum going into the break.
Adam Porter came out hot for Marshfield in the second half, dominating on defense and scoring the first three baskets of the third quarter. Marshfield began to pull away at the end of the third quarter, but by switching from a man-on-man to a zone defense the Millers were able to slow them down.
In the fourth quarter, with the help of Cody Pryce who began connecting on high-percentage shots and playing hard-nose defense, Springfield was able to keep the game even for most of the fourth.
“I can’t say enough about him. Cody did a great job defensively and held off against their leading scorer,” Auxier said.
The teams continued to battle back and fourth, going shot for shot at each end.
Finally, with two minutes left the game tied up at 41 each. Springfield’s Trent Davis, who missed a couple of inside shots in the first half, seemed to heat up, scoring seven points and leading the team in rebounding. The Millers brought the ball up court and found Davis, who sunk a mid-range jumper to put the Millers up by two points with 37 seconds left in game. After a Marshfield time out, the Millers buckled down on defense and a driving Pirates guard was blocked by Davis. The energy from the parents and students in the crowd seemed to fuel the Millers. With 20 seconds left to go the final inbound pass was stolen by a Springfield player who was immediately fouled, and the Millers had the game in hand.
“Well it was good to get on the boards, it was our first league win,” Auxier said. “And we played a very tough Marshfield team. The win gives us a chance to get back in the hunt.”
The Millers next contest will be at Thurston on Friday, Jan. 25. Tip-off is at 7 p.m.