PATRIOTS
coach Greg Nossaman said. “We haven’t played great all year, and tonight was a step in the right direction. We can shoot the basketball — we just haven’t shot it well yet. We focused on this game the last couple of days. We think it was a big game. The guys came in and stepped up.”
The Patriots can be excused for a slow start, with four football players having reported late because of their run to the Division I state semifinals.
But Roderick, a receiver in football, has had zero problems making the transition, scoring 37, 24, 28 and 29 points the first four games.
Friday night, North limited him to seven points through three quarters, but he got untracked with a long three-pointer 1:23 into the fourth quarter and provided a 47-40 lead with 5:23 left on a runner off a fast break.
Roderick provided breathing room with a driving layup and two free throws on consecutive possessions for a 55-48 lead with 2:05 left.
“They were faceguarding me up and down the court, and I knew my teammates would be open,” Roderick said of his earlier struggles. “I trusted them to make the shots. Great players show up in big-time games, and you have to show up.”
Liberty made adjustments on the fly after point guard Joey Thatcher was lost to a left ankle injury in a collision with North’s J.J. Harvey while going after a loose ball with 2:10 left in the third quarter.
Guard Nick Nakasian couldn’t hide his excitement about the win.
North won two games against Liberty in each of the two previous seasons, including a sectional tournament win in ’16.
“We marked this game on our schedule in the off-season,” he said. “We wanted this one. We haven’t played well, but we know we have the chemistry. We had to get one to get going. (Beating the pressure and playing without Thatcher) comes from the experience this team has. We showed some poise.”