Boys basketball kickoff tournament

Last week the Palisade Bulldogs boys’ basketball team competed in a tournament located at Central High School. The tournament was over a span of three days and consisted of both j.v. and varsity teams and one c team. The schools that competed included Palisade, Fruita, Rifle, Moffat County, Grand Junction, Central, Basalt, Summit, and Castle View.

Palisade started the first game strong but lost part of their teamwork in the second half. Palisade lost the first game to Moffat County with a score of 50-31. For the second game, the Bulldogs faced the Castle View Sabercats. The Bulldogs trailed the Sabercats the whole game but kept the gap at a minimum. The games ended with the Sabercats taking the win 61-52. With the two losses behind them, the Bulldogs came out ready to fight for the third game. They faced Basalt and the game was close throughout the first half but the Bulldogs pulled away widening the gap in the score in the second half. The Bulldogs took the win 77-52. Overall the Bulldogs went 1-2 in the tournament.

This tournament while the score didn’t show it was a great start to the season. The boys started to get in their groove and learn how to play together by the end. Luke Fay, a junior for Palisade, had a great weekend. He was awarded Palisade Player of the game for all three games. He also earned All-Tournament Team with an average of 23.6 points per game, 6.6 rebounds per game, 2 blocks per game, and 2 assists per game. Coach Cory says, “Overall I think it was a success. It was so many of the boys' first time playing varsity.” When asked what his hopes for the season Cory stated, “I never put a record or a number down that I want us to achieve. I want us to continue to grow throughout the season and give us a chance to win and if we do that I think things will happen for our program.