Baker boys top Vale

“We spent a lot of energy at La Grande Friday, both emotionally and physically,” said Baker coach Joel Richardson.

“We came out a little flat against Vale, but the guys responded well. The effort was there.”

Richardson continued to shuffle his lineup due to nagging injuries.

Ben Baxter saw his first varsity action, scoring seven points.

Braden Phillips led the Bulldogs with 17 points and 14 rebounds. It was his second “double-double” of the weekend.

Dillon Blankenship also scored 17 points.

“Braden gave us some nice inside play and Dillon added some complementary outside scoring,” Richardson said.

“Baxter scored his seven points in the third quarter. It was nice to see our bench continue to play well.”

Baker travels to Fruitland Thursday, then returns to Greater Oregon League play Saturday at Mac-Hi.

Baker    12    12    20    13    — 57

Vale    12    8    9    6    — 35

Baker (57) — Phillips 5 7-9 17, Blankenship 5 6-6 17, Baxter 3 0-0 7, Hamilton 2 1-2 5, Curtis 1 3-3 6, Richards 1 0-0 2, Smith. Totals 18 18-22 57.

Vale (35) — Skerjanec 3 0-0 9, Lattin 1 5-7 7, Samio 2 2-2 7, Sharp 2 0-2 5, Marcum 0 2-2 2, Burkhard 1 0-0 2, Hardin 1 0-0 3. Totals 10 9-13 35.

Three-point goals — Blankenship, Baxter, Curtis, Skerjanec 3, Samio, Sharp, Hardin. Fouled out — unavailable. Total fouls — unavailable. Technicals — none.