Fayette boys’ basketball coach Brandon Friebe is not one for moral victories. But he was not above praising his players for how they played in Friday night’s Courtwarming game against the now No. 1 team in Class 2, Eugene. The Falcons ultimately lost to the Eagles 76-40, but not before Fayette showed its mettle, especially in the first half.

Fayette entered the contest fresh off a three-point conference loss against Russellville three nights prior and with just two wins under its belt, both against Central State 8 opponent Linn, as the Falcons are in the first year of a rebuilding process. Eugene, heavily favored to win the inaugural season of CS8 basketball, took the court with an 18-3 overall record, its few losses coming at the hands of schools two and three classes larger.

The Eagles have now won all four of their conference games—including the defeat of a strong Harrisburg team by 20—with three teams left to beat to claim the first-ever CS8 title.

“We knew who was coming to play us tonight. And our goal tonight was to play as hard as we possibly could and to find things to be encouraged by,” Coach Friebe said.

Fayette took its only lead of the game early in the first quarter when junior point guard Charles Alexander sank a three to put the first points of the night on the scoreboard. Eugene quickly answered with a triple from senior Ryder Belt and took the lead with a pair of free throws from fellow senior Drew Hart to go up 5-3.

From there, the Eagles would hold the advantage on the scoreboard all night. Fayette came within two points midway through the opening period before Eugene sank three straight shots from behind the arc to pull ahead by double digits.

But what was not reflected on the scoreboard was the grit shown by the Falcon five against arguably the best team they have faced all season. Despite trailing by 13, Fayette went toe-to-toe with the Eagles for nearly four minutes throughout the middle of the second quarter, matching point-for-point. 

“We controlled the tempo for a large portion of that game,” Coach Friebe said. “It wasn’t always pretty, but I felt like we ran step for step with one of the best teams in the state tonight. We didn’t make as many shots. They shoot incredibly well and we’re not there yet. But I thought our effort was the best we’ve given all year long.”

Perhaps proving Friebe’s point, the Eagles shot a perfect 13-for-13 from the foul line and sank seven threes on the night, led by junior Dawson Busch with four triples.

However, Fayette was also proficient from the 3-point arc, sinking six long shots, half of which came from starting freshman Blake Braden on his way to a team-high 12 points. Fayette struggled from the line, making just five of 14 attempts.

“Eugene is an incredibly good team. We knew that our hands were full tonight. I’m so proud of our young guys who did not cower, who did not back down. They just played their tails off,” said Coach Friebe. “We did a lot of good things defensively. We stayed in man the whole game. We knew that going zone against this team was a really bad idea as well as they shot the ball. And I thought our guys really stepped up to the challenge.”

Braden was Fayette’s only double-digit scorer. Alexander and senior Kaleb Friebe each added eight points. Friebe sank back-to-back 3-pointers in the third quarter. Junior Payton Oeth, who still faces limited court time while recovering from injury, added seven points. Sophomore Colten Cross added three points, and freshman Morgan Campbell scored two.

Allen led 11 Eagles in the scorebook with a game-high 16 points with four triples. Belt posted 14 points, followed by senior Isaac Busch with 13 and Hart with 10.

Fayette didn’t have much time to rest. The Falcons turned right around and hosted Class 3 Brookfield at home on Monday night, falling 54-43, and returned to CS8 action against Tipton on Tuesday night after the Advertiser went to press. They close out the week at nearby rival Harrisburg as the Bulldogs’ Courtwarming opponent on Friday.

Fayette faces a former longtime Lewis & Clark on Monday against Marceline in the final home game of the season. The Falcons close out the regular season on the road against CS8 opponent South Callaway next Tuesday and at Jamestown on Thursday, February 20. Fayette then heads into the Class 2 District 7 Tournament hosted by Glasgow beginning on Monday, February 24. Seedings will be announced later this week, and brackets will printed in next week’s Advertiser.