High school basketball

teams want to play their best the second half of January, with the postseason

playoffs looming the second week of February.

The Sandy Creek Patriots

are right on schedule.

After two big region

wins over the weekend, the team rode a six-game winning streak into last

night's game against North Clayton. Coach Mauriche Triche's

boys improved their record to 15-5 overall and 10-2 in Region 4-AAAA with

victories over Pebblebrook (72-41) and Forest Park (73-71).

Remaining games are

against Woodward, Douglas County and Northgate.

After an early schedule

that included only three home games before Jan. 13, the Patriots are closing

out the regular season with 8 of 9 region games at home, which has given

them added momentum during their winning streak. Saturday's Forest

Park game was the team's 13th win out of 15.

Everyone played Friday

against Pebblebrook, giving Triche extra satisfaction going into a tough

contest less than 24 hours later. In that matchup, the Patriots clawed

back from a four-point halftime deficit and did not take the lead until

the fourth quarter.

Aaron Caruthers, the

team's leading scorer in nearly every game this season, paced Sandy

Creek with 26 points against Forest Park. Charles Willis added 17 and

Kevin Lott came off the bench to score in double figures. Lott has been

doing that for quite some time, Triche said, while often matching up against

the opposing team's top offensive player.

The Patriots are in

second place in the region behind Douglas County, who comes to Tyrone

next Tuesday with the regular season title on the line. Finishing in one

of the top two spots in the region is of utmost importance, Triche said,

when it comes to seedings for the postseason.

The home cooking will

continue for Sandy Creek into the first week of the playoffs, which the

Patriots will host.

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