BY JEFF FALK

 FREDERICKSBURG – Not unlike the process itself, the ego of the rebuild is a fragile thing. Certainly the Northern Lebanon boys’ basketball team wasn’t ready for this.

 But somewhere in the back of their collective consciousness, the Vikings had to figure there could be nights like these.

 On Friday night, during the championship game of the annual Northern Lebanon Christmas Tournament, the Vikings were force fed a heaping helping of reality, in the form of a 75-27, mercy-rule setback at the hands of powerful Littlestown. While the blowout was certainly a result of the undefeated Thunderbolts performing well, Northern Lebanon had a hand in it as well.

 Littlestown employed its length and athleticism to disrupt the Vikings throughout, turning errant decisions into easy buckets in transition. The Thunderbolts hit Northern Lebanon with a vicious opening volley, one that the Vikings never recovered from.

 Behind 29 points from tournament MVP and guard Jayden Weishaar, Littlestown established a double-digit lead a mere 3:46 into the contest and never looked back. Joining Weishaar on the all-tournament team were teammate Logan Collins, Vikings Ethan Borcky and Peyton Wolfe and Adam Long of Annville-Cleona.

  With the result, Northern Lebanon slipped to 4-5 on the year. Polished and talented Littlestown improved to 9-0 overall.

  “It’s a combination of both,” said Northern Lebanon head coach Chris George. “They’re (the Bolts) a heck of a team. We knew we were in for a tough night, especially when we didn’t have time to prepare for them. I don’t think they’re 50 points better than us. But clearly they’re better than us right now.

 “I don’t think we were ready for their pace,” continued George. “We just weren’t hitting shots, and we’re a jump-shooting team. Defensively, we were not ready for their pace, and they hit their shots. They made us pay, big time.”

  A bucket from Viking Josh Bowers in the contest’s third minute made it a 4-2 game. But it would be the last points Northern Lebanon would score over the next 4:29, during which time Littlestown was netting 16 unanswered points to open a 20-2 bulge.

 It was all uphill after that for the Vikings, and the incline got steeper and steeper.

  “We had a night like this against Garden Spot a couple of weeks ago,” said George. “It was a very similar game. Last night (Thursday against Tulpehocken) we played real well. This is twice that we really laid an egg the next game. For young teams, success is harder to deal with than adversity.

 “It’s real easy for kids to feel full of themselves,” George continued. “We had so many defensive breakdowns. After putting up 70 (against Tulpehocken), I think there was too much focus on that end of the floor, and not enough on the other.”

 In the second quarter, the Bolts’ lightning continued to come in waves.

 A driving lay-in from Borcky pulled Northern Lebanon to within 25-10 of the lead. But over the next six minutes, Littlestown outscored Northern Lebanon 14-0 to extend its lead to 39-10.

 The half ended with the Bolts up 41-14.

  “We needed to do the little things,” said George. “We got killed on second chance points. It was frustrating. It was some of our veterans too. I don’t know if we were ready to play. But we didn’t respond well. We did not fight. We did not stay together as a team. We lost our character a little bit tonight. But it’s a speed bump.

 “It’s tough when you’re down 25,” added George. “You sort of stem it a little bit, but we couldn’t finish. I think the kids could sense it. But I don’t know if we’re built to play from behind. We have to keep it close.”

 The Vikings converted just three two-point baskets all night. Littlestown knocked down 11 three-point field goals and outscored Northern Lebanon 33-15 from beyond the arc.

 With 11 points, Borcky was the only Northern Lebanon scorer to reach double digits.

 “We were lazy on defense,” said George. “We weren’t locked in. When you’re a shooting team, you can’t rely on just that. I thought we could’ve hung around with them a little bit.

 “This is the second or third time this year where we played really bad, but we came back,” George added. “Our young guys won’t stop. They have a future. I know our guys will come back next week. I think we will respond.”

 The Bolts also notched the initial eight points of the second half, to lengthen their lead to 35 points. Later in the third quarter, the mercy rule was brought into play.

  “I would say the biggest thing for us, because we’ve had a tough stretch and worked hard, is to have a break,” said George. “I want to see us grow in certain aspects of the game. Maybe it’s time to start growing. The freshman and sophomores have almost been through half of a season.

 “But we’re only going to go as far as our senior leaders take us,” concluded George. “At the end of the day, we’re 4-5. I’m not sure we thought we were going to be 4-5. With 13 games to go, can we get four or five more wins? You just want to give yourself a chance.”

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 To purchase images in this article email jkfalk2005@yahoo.com, or to view more go to https://lebanonsportsbuzz.com/photo-gallery/.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 2018-19 Northern Lebanon Boys’ Basketball Schedule