Outlaws beat Nestucca, will play for fourth place at state

Published 5:30 am Friday, March 1, 2024

The Enterprise Outlaws girls basketball team will play for a fourth-place finish Saturday, March 2 at the state 2A basketball tournament in Pendleton.

The Outlaws, powered by 26 points from Nevaeh James, earned the shot at fourth place by virtue of a 57-47 victory over the Nestucca Bobcats in a consolation bracket game Friday, March 1 at Pendleton High School.

The Outlaws will play for fourth place against the Oakridge Warriors. That game is scheduled for 10:45 a.m. Saturday at the Pendleton Convention Center.

The Outlaws, now 18-10 on the season, broke open a tight game in the third quarter, when they outscored the Bobcats 14-5 to erase a 28-27 halftime deficit. The Outlaws shot 46.2% from the floor in the second half, while holding the Bobcats to 11.1% shooting. 

The Outlaws continued to have issues with three-point shooting, going 0-for-7 for the game. The team has yet to hit a three-point shot during its first two games in Pendleton.

Alex Rowley added 18 points and hauled in 16 rebounds for the Outlaws. Kimber Stein had five points in the game, and Tessa Duncan added four. Codi Cunningham and Kendall Wigen each scored two points. 

James was named the Moda player of the game for the Outlaws. Hallee Knight, with 15 points, was the player of the game for the Bobcats, who end their season with a 23-5 mark and had won 17 straight games before traveling to Pendleton and losing twice. 

Oakridge, the Outlaws’ Saturday opponent, is the No. 10 seed in the tournament. (Enterprise is the No. 8 seed.) The Warriors, 21-9 overall, lost to No. 2 Bandon, 34-23, in the quarterfinals on Thursday but rebounded on Friday by beating Stanfield, 57-48.

With Stanfield’s loss, Enterprise is the last team remaining in the tournament from the Blue Mountain Conference.