JUDA — The conference basketball game between Juda and Argyle on Tuesday, Jan. 17 was more than just a game, as the Panther community came out in support of Eric Makos.

Eric, a School Board member and JV and youth basketball coach, has suffered numerous health-related issues that have left him hospitalized. To show its support, Juda raised money from T-shirt sales, concession stand proceeds and goodwill donations to present to the Makos family — wife Jody, daughters Emily and Ellie and son Aaron. 

“It says a lot about Juda and the community,” Juda head coach Aaron Duecker said. “It’s hard not to get emotional about something like that. I coached with him the first four years I was here, so it’s good to see the support we have here.”

After Eric’s youngest daughter, Ellie, sang the national anthem, Argyle won the tip-off to get the game started.

The Orioles jumped out to a 9-0 lead with buckets from Max Godfrey, Mason McNett and Ike Waage. During the run, Caden Stoeger took a charge from Braydon Steinmann.

Michael Hosch gave Juda its first points of the game four minutes in. After an offensive put-back from Noah Moen, Jayden Brown drained a three — the only one of the game. The Panthers remained competitive with a free throw from Erik Woodward before the Orioles went on another 9-0 run.

“Typically, we don’t start as strong as that to start a game, but that’s where we were the best today,” Duecker said. “Size and hustle just got the better of us.”

Thomas Nelson Jr. sparked the run with a free throw, followed by a basket from Waage to give Argyle a 10-point lead. Waage then stole the ball and passed it up the court to McNett for another two, prompting a Panther timeout.

The Orioles came out of the timeout to score four points in the same possession, as Nelson Jr. went to the line for bonus. He made one free throw and, on the second, his teammates grabbed the rebound and fed it to William Helfvogt for a basket. Hunter Foster fouled Helfvogt in the process, sending him to the line, where Helfvogt made the and-one.

Aiden Schadewalt broke up Argyle’s run with a basket, but the Orioles pressed on. Helfvogt scored again, followed by two free throws from Moen. With a bucket from McNett, Argyle took a 20-point lead with five minutes left in the half.

Waage scored back-to-back baskets before Stoeger picked up his third foul, sending Blake Adkins for bonus. He missed the shot, but Woodward went to the line shortly after for double bonus. He made both of his shots, putting Juda in double figures.

Jace Star closed out the half with back-to-back scores, giving Argyle a 30-point lead at halftime.

Brown kept pace with the Orioles for the opening minutes of the game, exchanging baskets with Helfvogt and Waage.

Another nine-point run extended Argyle’s lead to 53-14. Stoeger and Godfrey scored two points each, followed by back-to-back baskets by McNett. Helfvogt capped the run with a trip to the free-throw line. 

Brown interrupted the run with his own free throw, but a bucket from Nelson Jr. put the Orioles ahead by 40.

The two teams exchanged the next four baskets before Helfvogt extended Argyle’s lead with four consecutive points. Off the bench, Garrett Phillipson got in on the scoring. When the running clock stopped, the Orioles came out on top by a final score of 70-21.

Argyle had four different players score in double figures, led by Helfvogt with 16 points. McNett trailed right behind with 15 points, while Waage tallied 10. Moen, Godfrey and Nelson all scored six points, while Phillipson and Starr chipped in four each. The final three points came from Stoeger.

All of the Orioles 70 points came in the paint, as they were able to get the ball deep against Juda’s defense.

“We came in knowing we could be more physical than them,” Argyle head coach Jesse Halvorsen said. “Our goal was to try and get it inside. I don’t think we hit a three all game. I thought the kids stayed true to our goal.”

Brown was the leading scorer for the Panthers, tallying eight points. Woodward trailed with five, three of which came at the charity stripe. Schadewalt finished with four points, followed by Hosch and Foster with two each.

The win, paired with Barneveld’s win over Black Hawk, keeps the Orioles half a game back of the Eagles in the Six Rivers East Conference.

“These kids are finally coming together,” Halvorsen said. “We are still kind of young, but they are starting to figure it out a bit. We are giving ourselves a good chance to keep competing, and hopefully by the end of the year, putting a number up there.”

Conversely, the loss situates Juda at the bottom of the conference, half a game back of Albany. Despite the loss and his team’s 0-14 overall record, Duecker credits his team’s grit and effort each game.

“Everybody is so young. The biggest thing so far this year is they haven’t given up,” Duecker said. “They come to practice every day and work hard — they want to get better. There’s only so much you can do about size and strength, but I think that — as a whole team — we’ve done a good job about not hanging our heads.”