Red Devils edge out Charlo, Alberton at home

NOXON 61,

CHARLO 55

The Noxon Red Devils hosted the Charlo Vikings, securing the win on their home court.

The Vikings would be the first to put points on the board, but the quick-footed Red Devils would be swift to answer with points of their own. Noxon would be down by five points, when Ricky Williams was able to sneak in a three pointer to close the point gap. The Vikings quickly answered with swift layups before the end of the first quarter. Headed into the second, Noxon was now down by only six points. Quickly in the second quarter Charlo would score the first basket, making the point gap larger. While the Red Devils were able to break past Charlo for layups within minutes, the Vikings still held their lead. Williams was able to find the basket again for another sneaky three pointer putting the Red Devils down by one with plenty of game left in the first half. Both teams would go basket for basket, and with two minutes left, Noxon was able to tie up the game. Charlo was able to answer with a layup, once again taking the lead. The Red Devils would have none of it, putting up a layup of their own going into halftime with a score of 27-30.

Noxon came out with new fire in the second half, quickly getting the first points, only to have the Vikings answer with a layup of their own. Charlo would keep the Red Devils from getting another basket for over three minutes, until a swift play allowed for a Noxon layup. With only 50 seconds left in the third quarter, the Red Devils found themselves only a point away from the lead, but Charlo was able to put down a three pointer, now making the point gap larger. In the final quarter Noxon never faltered keeping their fire, and they were able to take the final quarter for themselves. Putting the first points on the board, they would keep that momentum, keeping the Vikings at bay for much of the quarter. Within minutes the Red Devils had taken the lead, but quickly Charlo was able to close the gap to only one point. With less than a minute left and the score 56-52, it could be anyone's game. With 30 seconds on the clock, Charlo was able to sink another three pointer, closing the gap Noxon had set. But ultimately the red hot Devils were able to keep their lead and get the massive home win.

"We played hard in the fourth quarter to get the comeback victory and it felt good," Coach Trevor Kayser said.

Shane Murray and Williams led the Red Devils with 20 points each, Justice Kayser behind them with 11. Senior Aiden Currie rounded it out with six.

CHARLO 59,

NOXON 16

It was the Lady Red Devil's turn to take on the Charlo Lady Vikings falling 59-16

Capitalizing off rebounds and steals the Lady Vikings came out getting the first points on the board. Charlo would have an eight point lead before the Lady Red Devils were able to get their own points on the board. The Lady Vikings would keep their massive lead for most of the first quarter, making the young Noxon team work for every basket. Headed into the second quarter Charlo had an impressive 17 point gap, and they would make the first basket, making the point gap larger. With only minutes left, Noxon would get their only points in the second quarter, as the tight Charlo defense shut them down. While the Lady Red Devils tried to shut down the powerhouse Lady Vikings, they were unable to before the half.

Noxon had a new fire as they came out, getting the first basket of the second half. Charlo was quick to answer with baskets of their own. The young Lady Devils would fight to keep the Lady Vikings from scoring, but with only minutes left Charlo held an enormous lead. Going into the final quarter Charlo held onto their 38 point lead, but the Lady Red Devils never faltered and kept the Lady Vikings to minimal scoring.

TROY 44, NOXON 36

The Lady Red Devils then hit the road taking on the Troy Lady Trojans, sinking 36-44.

Troy came out setting the tone for the first half by getting the jump off and then the first points of the game. The young Noxon team was able to answer back with a basket of their own. Swiftly the Lady Trojans were able to gain and keep the lead much of the first quarter. The teams would hustle back and forth before the Lady Red Devils were able to take the lead. The lead was short-lived as coming into the second Troy was able to capitalize off rebounds to gain the lead. Working together to break past the tight knit defense of the Lady Trojans, the young teams would go basket for basket until half time, where Troy was able to take the lead.

Coming back from the half, it would be the Lady Devils that would gain the first points in the third quarter. Swiftly Troy was able to get a steal and a quick layup to continue their lead. Noxon would try their best to shut out the Lady Trojans to close the point gap before the final quarter. The final quarter the young Lady Devils never faltered and kept speed, but were unable to break past the full court pressure that Troy put on them for the lead. Capitalizing off several rebounds, the Lady Trojans were able to take the win.

Maygan Swanson led the Lady Red Devils with an impressive 18 points, and Seanna Richter proved to be a powerhouse in the paint, pulling down 8 rebounds for Noxon.

TROY 55, NOXON 44

Up next the Red Devils had their shot at the Troy Trojans, falling 55-44. While Noxon was able to win the jump off, it would be the Trojans who would earn the first points on the board. The Devils were able to answer back with a swift layup. The boys would go point for point, until Troy was able to pull ahead. With only a minute left, Noxon was able to sink a layup, putting them in the lead. The Devils were able to keep their lead going into the second quarter, keeping the Trojans scoreless for over half of the quarter. In the last minute both teams would go back and forth, but with 50 seconds left Troy would take the lead once again.

Coming back from the half, the Devils were able to take the lead for their own. They shut down the Trojans and kept them to minimal scoring, and with three minutes left the score was 35-30. But in a blink of an eye Troy was able to close the large point gap, putting them behind by only one. The final quarter the Trojans were able to gain the lead, and they were able to keep the Devils from scoring, keeping the lead and taking the win on their home court.

"We couldn't get into a rhythm on offense for the fourth quarter and Troy just out-hustled us," Coach Trevor Kayser said after the game.

NOXON 54,

ALBERTON 42

The Red Devils went on to host the young Alberton Panthers, taking the 54-42 win.

Noxon had a sleepy start, gaining the first points only to have the Panthers sneak in and even the score. The Devils had a hard time getting past the tenacious Alberton defense, but were able to quickly get another layup. The Panthers were able to break down the Noxon defenses to make the point gap only two points behind. The Devils were able to find their rhythm and by the end they were able to take a bigger lead. Going into the second quarter the young Alberton team kept their intensity, pushing past the height advantage of the Red Devils. Swiftly, though, the Noxon team was able to break past the defense to keep the lead. The teams would go back and forth and at the half the Devils were only up by four points.

Noxon was able to find their own intensity coming into the second half, rapidly getting the first layup. Alberton was able to answer with their own points. The Panthers were quick to shut down the Devils defense to take the lead, but it was only brief as Noxon was able to find the net to take the lead. The Devils would keep Alberton to minimal scoring in the third. Going into the final quarter Noxon was up 45-30. The final quarter was met with lots of fouls from both teams. The scrappy teams would fight head to head, until Noxon was able to pull ahead and keep their lead and the at home win.

The Red Devils hosted Clark Fork, Idaho, on Tuesday. Results of that game will be in next week's Ledger. The teams also host Two Eagle River on Friday before traveling to Charlo on Saturday.