8th Grade White

8th Grade YBA White finished up a successful season by taking 3rd place in the 8th Grade Purple Division at Reno.

The Dawgs started the weekend by playing the Shasta Mountain Athletics. This was a tight contest the entire way, with the Dawgs prevailing in the end 59-54. This game could be titled the “Shayne Baynes Show.” Shayne scored 30 points, including 4 three-pointers, and led the team with 10 rebounds. Coach Gee said of Shayne’s performance, “The experience of our team showed in this game. We have been in close games this was our best game of the year as we showed poise and executed to beat a very good team”. Justin Holmes added 10 points and 9 rebounds while Justin Kinney had 3 steals and Joe Henry swatted 5 shots. The Dawgs were efficient on offense, shooting 53% on their 2 point field goal attempts.

Next up, the Dawgs faced a very talented Stockton Shock team. The game see-sawed back and forth and featured high intensity play, including a dunk by the Shock center. Three successive turnovers and a couple of quick whistle technicals against the Dawgs turned the tide late in the game as the Shock pulled away to win 54-44. The Shock had a huge advantage at the free throw line, attempting 16 free throws versus just 1 for the Dawgs.

Luke Jordan led the Dawgs with 15 points, hitting 6 of 7 shots, including 3 three pointers. Will Greenwood and Justin Holmes each added 8 points. Joe Henry was solid in the middle with 6 rebounds and 4 blocks. Shayne Baynes had 5 blocks as the Dawgs blocked 15 shots in total. Justin Kinney was credited with at least 3 assists. The Dawgs again shot well, hitting 59% of their 2 point shots and 32% of their 3 pointers. Too many turnovers however, limited their shot attempts. The game certainly gave the Dawgs good experience against a strong opponent.

In the final game of pool play, the Dawgs played an overmatched Desert Scorpions team. The Dawgs had a hard time focusing and playing their game against a very weak opponent, but eventually the Dawgs got rolling and cruised to a 59-22 win, with all 10 players scoring points. Luke Jordan was again high point man with 16 points. Austin Marcus had a strong game with 8 points, 5 steals and 2 blocks. Justin Holmes led the team with 6 rebounds.

With their 2-1 record and second place in Pool A, the Dawgs were matched up against the Marin Storm in the game for 3rd place in the Purple Division. The game was tight throughout and the Storm led at half 22-19. However, the Dawgs fought back to take the lead in the second half and were up three until the Storm banked in a 3 pointer with 20 seconds left. Coach Gee called time out with 10 seconds left to design one of his famous in bounds plays. And sure enough, his plan and the team’s execution paid off as Shayne Baynes scored a layup off the out of bounds and the Dawgs won 44-42! Justin Holmes was the player of the game as he totaled 18 points and 8 rebounds. As a team, the Dawgs made up for poor shooting with strong offensive rebounding, collecting a total of 15 offensive rebounds (6 of those by Joe Henry). Shayne Baynes struggled with his shot, but kept up his intensity to record 5 steals for the Dawgs. The win was a great way for the boys to finish their season. Coach Gee commented "Shayne came up big when we needed it and Justin Holmes had a huge game and executed the last play to perfection!


Mark Greenwood