With Wilsonville sitting atop the Northwest Oregon Conference standings in the last week of January, the goals and expectations for this team continue to grow. Though Wilsonville is currently a 5A Oregon basketball dynasty, this team feels different.
With 4 of the 5 starters returning, Wilsonville was the favorite at the beginning of the 2023-2024 season. However, in mid-December, the Wildcats hit a bump in the road in the form of a 3 game losing streak during the Capitol City Classic.
In past seasons Wilsonville has not had a tumultuous period of that magnitude. However, Wilsonville turned around after that losing streak and has rattled off 6 straight wins including a thrilling overtime win over conference rival Putnam. This has led to great expectations for this Wilsonville team to grow again.
As Wilsonville looks to continue their hot streak, the Canby Cougars will attempt to derail Wilsonville off their tracks. Canby comes into this matchup with a mediocre 6-7 record. On the other hand, do boast an impressive 4-1 league record, their only league loss coming against Putnam 73-78.
Canby and Wilsonville have been rivals ever since they began to share the NWOC, and it was Canby who broke the streak of Wilsonville home wins against league opponents last year when the Cougars traveled to Wilsonville High School and defeated the Wildcats 34-29 in an ugly defensive slugfest.
As put by Senior Forward Kyle Counts this game means a lot to the Wildcats: “One of our biggest goals is to win league and with Canby also competing for the top spot this is a statement game, they ended our streak last year so it feels even more personal this year.”
This is a big game for both teams as both of them jockey for positioning in the NWOC, and for Canby they get Wilsonville at home and without starting Guard Nick Colyer. Colyer is eager to get back on the floor and help out his teammates: “The team is looking good I’m really proud of the guys, the ankle is getting better and I am excited to get back and do what I can for the team.”
With Wilsonville on a hot streak and Canby looking to pull off a massive upset for a second year in a row, this game will be big moving forward for both schools as league play continues.