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Rams Stampede Newsome, Advance to Semis

RAMS 71, WOLVES 36

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By Eric Horchy | The Suncoast News

Published: February 19, 2009

NEW PORT RICHEY - Thursday night's Class 5A Region 2 quarterfinal playoff game between Ridgewood High and visiting Newsome ended quite familiarly for both teams – with the Rams running away in a rout.

Led by Charles Jones (22 points) and Alvin Satram (20 points), Ridgewood nearly matched the 36-point thrashing it laid on the Wolves New Year's evening during the Ram Classic championship game, eliminating Newsome, 71-36.

Newsome managed to hang in the contest through one quarter thanks to accurate outside shooting from leading-scorer Samal Shepherd. The Wolves were within five points three minutes into the second quarter, but that was the closest they'd get from there on out.

Ridgewood opened things up and began scoring in a flash, going on a virtual game-ending 14-0 run. That forced Newsome (20-6) to rush shots and get away from its slowed-down tempo. The Rams' inside game was nearly unstoppable and caused much of the disruption.

"We start out with Luke (Poderis) and Bryan (Jones) inside and make people respect us there," Ridgewood head coach Gary Anders said. "Once we do that, shots open up for Alvin and C.J. (Charles Jones)."

Anders said that he did not feel truly comfortable until the Rams were up by 20 heading into halftime, but Ridgewood's authority over the game's pace was evident at the start of their big second-quarter run.

Charles Jones's shooting (four 3-pointers), Satram's high-tempo play and Poderis and Jones down low combined for a mix the Wolves could not contain.

"That was a great senior performance tonight," Anders said of Satram, his point guard. "He was a leader. I thought he was the guy giving us a lot of our energy."

While Poderis did not light up the scoreboard, his rebounding and shot-blocking abilities disrupted the Newsome attack all night and opened up numerous second-chance baskets on the other end.

Ridgewood (26-2) moves on to play Tampa King High (District 5A-8), who defeated Land O' Lakes 51-44. The Rams will have to travel to King because of the way this year's playoff bracket is set up.

SCORING:

Newsome - 17 – 4 – 8 – 7 --- 36
Ridgewood - 20 – 21 – 16 – 14 --- 71

TOP SCORERS:

Newsome

Samal Shepherd – 19 Points
Charles Murphy – 11 Points

Ridgewood

Charles Jones – 22 Points
Alvin Satram – 20 Points
Lukas Poderis – 10 Points
Bryan Jones – 10 Points

Eric Horchy can be contacted at 727-815-1071 or ehorchy@suncoastnews.com.

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