Sherman head coach Max Martin, left, has led the Huskies to their first playoff appearance since 2019. They are scheduled to play No. 4 seed North Douglas High on March 6 in Baker City.
Noah Noteboom / file photoSHERMAN CO. — Sherman County showed a physical side of its game March 1, and the result was a state-tournament clinching, 56-51, Class 1A boys basketball win over visiting Adrian.
The Huskies went toe-to-toe with the Antelopes and Sherman (23-5) scored seven of the game’s final points, breaking away from a 49-49 tie in the closing two minutes.
Sherman returns to the eight-team state tournament for the first time since 2019. That year marked the end of a five-year run for the Huskies, which included back-to-back state championships in 2016 and 2017. Husky Coach Max Martin was a Sherman senior that season and scored 20 points in the championship game — a 21-point win over Powder Valley.
Sherman plays North Douglas (24-3) at 3:15 p.m. on March 6. Dufur also qualified for state (see related story this issue), making this the first time the Big Sky Conference will have two boys team in the Oregon School Activities Association-sponsored tourney since 2019, when Sherman and Horizon Christian qualified.
The No. 4 seed Huskies had to outlast a physical Adrian team to do so. The Antelopes (18-7) have a varsity roster that includes 10 players who were members of the state title football team. They include bruising 6-foot-2, 200-pound forward Rance Jordan. He scored his team’s first eight points before being whistled for his second foul and left the game at the 2:54 mark of the first quarter.
Adrian stayed close in Jordan’s absence, mainly behind the play of Brooks Martin, who scored six of his seven points in the second quarter.
In the meantime, Sherman was receiving its usual contribution from senior Isaish Riggs. His knack for offensive rebounds and a deft turnaround jumper in the key helped him score 13 of his game-high 25 points in the first two periods.
Then, with Jordan back on the court in the third quarter, Riggs scored 10 points to help the Huskies build a six-point lead. The margin ballooned to nine points after Gabe Fritts hit a 3-pointer and Riggs scored in close, making the score 49-40, Sherman County. Fritts finished with 13 points.
Jordan’s free throw started a 9-0 Adrian run, which tied the game with 2:04 remaining. But the senior fouled out with 1:44 remaining, and Sherman scored the next six points to pull away. Jamie Phelps, who had 14 points, scored in transition and then in close, and teammate Josh Ward added a layup to cap the Husky spurt.
The Huskies advanced to the second round with a 71-37, home win Feb. 26 over Pilot Rock/Ukiah. The fourth-seeded Huskies looked sluggish at the start, but once they found their offensive rhythm they never looked back.
Now they have their sights set on Baker City.
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