
By Brandon Kinsella
In an interdivisional IIAAG Boys Basketball matchup between the St. Paul Warriors and Okkodo Bulldogs, the Warriors would grab the win 64-50 Tuesday night, bouncing back from a Wednesday night loss to the FD Friars.

Wendy’s Player of the Game: Jahmar White led the St. Paul Warriors with 28 points and three steals in their 64-50 win over the Okkodo Bulldogs. (Photo by Michael Blas)
The Warriors began to pull away in the 3rd Quarter in dominant fashion. They played aggressive defense, had crisp ball movement, and demonstrated great team chemistry in transition. St. Paul built a 15-point lead five minutes into the 3rd Quarter. The Bulldogs, like they so often do, put up a fight and would not allow the Warriors win comfortably.
In the previous matchup between these teams, Okkodo came back from a 25-point deficit and made the game a one possession ballgame before the Warriors held off their comeback. St. Paul, being well-aware of Okkodo’s ability to comeback from behind, continued to apply pressure when Okkodo seemed to be gaining any sort of momentum.
Okkodo’s Jon Michael Lorena was instrumental in keeping his team within striking distance throughout the game. On each offensive possession, Lorena stayed persistent in the paint and racked up offensive rebounds, making the most of his second chance opportunities and finished with 23 points and nine rebounds.
A momentous shot by Okkodo sharpshooter Nico Bonita would cut his team’s deficit to 10 in the final minute of the 3rd Quarter.
But in the final seconds of the quarter, a three-point buzzer beater by Warriors Jahmar White would allow the Warriors to regain momentum, giving them a 13-point lead at 51-38 going into the fourth.
White had several key baskets throughout the game whenever Okkodo started to cut into the lead. He talked about stepping up when the moments matter,
“Those are just the moments that you live for on the court. Many of us on the team like to play for the big moments and it’s always a good time trading buckets.”
After leaving the game momentarily due to a scrape opening up, Warriors Point Guard Thelo Orichiro returned in the fourth quarter, continuing his all-around performance to help his team win by a large margin. Orichiro played efficiently throughout the game, doing a little bit of everything to ensure a Warriors victory.
Orichiro finished with nine points, four steals, and five assists.
The Warriors continued the pressure in the 4th Quarter and would lead by as much as 20 points. A transition layup by White would put the Warriors up by 17 with a minute left to go. Okkodo had several looks from deep, but bricked on many of their attempts. With 20 seconds left to play, Bonita hit a three from deep to cut the deficit to 14. But the game was out of reach and the Warriors would go on to win 64-50.
First Half
In the first half, the Warriors minimized their mistakes, and forced Okkodo turnovers in the half-court setting. They were efficient in transition and moved the ball to find the open man.
At the end of the first half, the Warriors led by nine at 36-27.
Okkodo kept the game within reach with second chance points in the paint. Lorena led the charge, scoring 13 first half points which came solely from shots in the interior. The Bulldogs, who are usually a threat from the three-point line, struggled to get a rhythm from deep, as the Warriors perimeter defense was airtight throughout the ballgame.
White talked about how his team learned from their first loss of the season, last week, and how they were able to come back from the loss and stay composed in this matchup against Okkodo,
“I think that the loss was a big wake up call for our team. We’ve been on a win streak, and that loss taught us that we can’t get complacent.”
“I think that the loss was a big wake up call for our team. We’ve been on a win streak, and that loss taught us that we can’t get complacent.”
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GPS Sports Calendar
February 2023
- SU
- MO
- TU
- WE
- TH
- FR
- SA
Events for January
1st
ISA GIRLS SOCCER
ISA BOYS BASKETBALL
Events for February
2nd
ISA BASEBALL LEAGUE
ISA TRACK & FIELD MEET
IIAAG BEACH VOLLEYBALL
IIAAG TENNIS LEAGUE
Events for February
3rd
ISA TRACK & FIELD MEET
IIAAG BEACH VOLLEYBALL
IIAAG BOYS BASKETBALL
ISA GIRLS SOCCER
TRITONS BASEBALL INVITATIONAL PLAYOFFS
Events for February
4th
ISA BASEBALL LEAGUE
IIAAG BEACH VOLLEYBALL
Events for February
6th
IIAAG BEACH VOLLEYBALL
ISA GIRLS SOCCER
IIAAG BOYS BASKETBALL
ISA BOYS BASKETBALL
Events for February
7th
ISA BASEBALL LEAGUE
IIAAG BEACH VOLLEYBALL
IIAAG TENNIS LEAGUE
IIAAG BOYS BASKETBALL
Events for February
8th
ISA GIRLS SOCCER
ISA BOYS BASKETBALL
Events for February
9th
ISA BASEBALL LEAGUE
ISA TRACK & FIELD MEET
IIAAG BEACH VOLLEYBALL
IIAAG TENNIS LEAGUE
Events for February
10th
ISA GIRLS SOCCER
ISA TRACK & FIELD MEET
IIAAG BEACH VOLLEYBALL
IIAAG BOYS BASKETBALL
TRITONS BASEBALL INVITATIONAL FINALS
Events for February
12th
MONSTER ENERGY MOTOCROSS ROUND 2
Events for February
13th
IIAAG BEACH VOLLEYBALL PLAYOFFS
ISA GIRLS SOCCER
ISA BOYS BASKETBALL
IIAAG BOYS BASKETBALL
Events for February
14th
IIAAG BEACH VOLLEYBALL PLAYOFFS
ISA BASEBALL LEAGUE
IIAAG TENNIS LEAGUE
IIAAG BOYS BASKETBALL
Events for February
15th
IIAAG BEACH VOLLEYBALL PLAYOFFS
ISA BOYS BASKETBALL
ISA GIRLS SOCCER
Events for February
16th
ISA BASEBALL LEAGUE
ISA TRACK & FIELD MEET
IIAAG TENNIS LEAGUE
IIAAG BEACH VOLLEYBALL PLAYOFFS
Events for February
17th
ISA TRACK & FIELD MEET
IIAAG BOYS BASKETBALL
ISA GIRLS SOCCER
Events for February
18th
BLACK HISTORY MONTH 2K/5K
World Athletics Cross Country Championships
ISA BASEBALL LEAGUE
Events for February
20th
IIAAG BEACH VOLLEYBALL PLAYOFFS
ISA GIRLS SOCCER
ISA BOYS BASKETBALL
Events for February
21st
IIAAG BEACH VOLLEYBALL PLAYOFFS
ISA BASEBALL LEAGUE
IIAAG TENNIS LEAGUE
IIAAG BOYS BASKETBALL
Events for February
22nd
IIAAG BEACH VOLLEYBALL PLAYOFFS
ISA GIRLS SOCCER
ISA BOYS BASKETBALL
Events for February
23rd
IIAAG BEACH VOLLEYBALL PLAYOFFS
ISA BASEBALL LEAGUE
IIAAG TENNIS LEAGUE
Events for February
24th
ISA GIRLS SOCCER
IIAAG BOYS BASKETBALL QUARTERFINALS
Events for February
24th
Events for February
25th
Events for February
27th
IIAAG BEACH VOLLEYBALL PLAYOFFS
ISA BOYS BASKETBALL SEMIFINALS
ISA GIRLS SOCCER SEMIFINALS
Events for February
28th
IIAAG BEACH VOLLEYBALL FINALS
ISA BASEBALL LEAGUE SEMIFINALS
IIAAG TENNIS LEAGUE
IIAAG BOYS BASKETBALL SEMIFINALS

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