Tully tallies 27 in Outlaw win

By Janice Kurbjun
Times staff reporter

Shoot ’em up was the game plan of the Outlaws in their home duel against Douglas on Saturday as they ended the night with a 75-69 victory.

With a large student crowd and a parent fan pocket, as well as a smattering of Douglas supporters, the gym’s energy throbbed as Rawlins went nearly point for point against its opponent.

The team’s initial aggressiveness gave them a solid lead by the end of the third quarter. The Outlaws snared the Bearcats with a 13-point margin. The cheerleaders had the crowd on its feet. Every play was received with a gasp, a cheer, a groan or a taunt at the referee.

It was a story of being at the right place at the right time for much of the game. Aaron Willcox stepped in to have more than one successful attempt at swatting baskets away from Douglas. He also slid in to make crucial steals.

“Aaron is athletic, so he’s quicker than most,” head coach Linzie Green said. “He tends to get out of position, but he finds a way to get back in. And when he’s hitting his shots he’s virtually unstoppable.”

Willcox finished the night with 20 points, nailing several 3-pointers.

Casey Tully came off the bench after a prolonged academic absence to score 27 points for the team. Saturday marked the first game the team was at its full capacity of 19 players, bringing four back into play. It paid off when Tully and Trey Jebens each earned their fifth personal foul in the fourth quarter. Having a deeper bench allowed Green to substitute players who helped push toward the win.

The Bearcats brought it, but “it” was not enough to put them above the Outlaws. Their team leader, Shane Richedndifer, was a solid contender for Rawlins, but the Outlaws’ height proved to be a wall against his efforts.

With a Bearcat timeout with 44 seconds left in the fourth, all Rawlins had to do was hold them off. A missed two-point effort from Douglas got pulled down by Rawlins. They tried to force the ball to the other end with poor placement, providing some last-minute excitement. Regaining possession, the Outlaws drew a foul to put Kody Mann on the line to shoot points 74 and 75.

Rawlins successfully rebounded from their 87-70 loss on Friday to Wheatland. Proud of Saturday’s victory, Green remained true to his job and found things to work on in preparation for games against Wyoming Indian and Newcastle this weekend.

“We need to work on defense,” he said. “I also need to get them to tell me when they’re tired. I don’t know why they’re tired because we do a ton of conditioning. But if they tell me, we have a full bench now so I can take them out.”

Green intends to prepare his team for the weekend games by taking note of what their opponents will bring to the table. They should work various drills, but the coach hopes the team also prepares mentally for the tactics they expect to face.