The Casady Cyclones proved they can win big last Tuesday (they won by 21) but on Friday they proved they can win the close ones too. They came out on top in a nail-biter against Riverfield Country Day and snuck past 56-54. The win was all the more spectacular given Casady's disadvantage in MaxPreps' Oklahoma basketball rankings (they are ranked 469th, while the Ravens are ranked 149th).
Casady found their leader in underclassman Kaden Leache, who scored 22 points along with five steals. That makes it three consecutive games in which Leache has scored at least a third of Casady's points. Another player making a difference was Payton Mitchell-johnson, who scored seven points along with five assists and two steals.
When it comes to explaining why Riverfield Country Day lost, one person who can't be blamed is Braedon Clinton. Despite the final result, he scored 21 points along with seven rebounds. Clinton has been hot recently, having posted 15 or more points the last six times he's played. The team also got some help courtesy of Cameron Rutterford, who scored nine points along with eight rebounds.
Riverfield Country Day struggled to get the ball back on offense and finished the game with only three offensive rebounds. They were crushed by their opponents in that department as Casady pulled down 11 offensive rebounds.
The win was the third in a row for Casady, bringing their record for this year to 10-10. As for Riverfield Country Day, their loss ended a three-game streak of wins at home and dropped them to 16-5.
Both teams will have to hit the road in their upcoming games. Casady won't have much time to rest: their next matchup is against the Commandos at 1:30 p.m. on February 3rd. Cascia Hall will be looking to keep their four-game home win streak alive. As for Riverfield Country Day, they will head out on the road to take on the Bulldogs at 7:30 p.m. on Monday.
