KAISERSLAUTERN, Germany – The Kaiserslautern boys basketball team heard the whispers heading into Friday night’s game against SHAPE.

Nobody was giving the Raiders much of a chance versus a team led by one of the best players in DODEA-Europe in Bela Clobes. Even their fellow students didn’t have a lot of faith in them.

“People always say we’re going to lose,” Kaiserslautern’s Jason Quarles said. “We have something to prove.”

“People from our own school saying that we were going to get blown out,” teammate Caleb Ringer chimed in. “We got a little bit of a chip on our shoulder going into it because of that.”

The Raiders hung around and forced overtime at Kaiserslautern High School, before eventually coming back in the extra frame to defeat the Spartans 58-57.

It was a game in which neither team held a double-digit lead. In fact, the Raiders (2-4, 2-4) didn’t take a single lead until the 5-minute, 47-second mark in the fourth quarter.

Overall, Kaiserslautern held the advantage for just 2:40 throughout the game.

For coach Gabriell Horton, the performance was the first time the Raiders put together a complete game. He said the best had been three quarters.

“We really made sure that we played all the way through,” Horton said. “And it was even four-and-a-half quarters (Friday). It was important to finish.”

Ringer and Quarles played key roles in the victory over the Spartans (1-4, 1-4). And they did so coming off the bench.

In Ringer’s case, he was limited in the number of quarters he could play because he’s a member of the JV team as well.

Ringer put together an aerial bombardment that jumpstarted the Raiders at key moments. The guard connected on six 3-pointers. Three of them came over the final 5 minutes of action, beginning with a trey with 45 seconds remaining in regulation to give Kaiserslautern a 47-46 lead.

Then, in overtime, with his team trailing twice, Ringer let fly two more from beyond the arc at the 2:45 and 1:19 marks, the latter of which cut the deficit to 55-54.

“I was feeling like I couldn’t miss,” said Ringer, who finished with a team-high 21 points. “If I got an open shot or an inch of space, I was going to let it go.”

On the team’s next possession, Ringer played facilitator, finding Quarles on the wing. And Quarles delivered with 37.6 seconds left in the game to give the Raiders the lead for good.

“I know I can make it,” Quarles said. “So, I took it. I was confident about it.”

As much as the deep shots helped Kaiserslautern, the home team got plenty of inside help from Uray Dukuly. The forward totaled 16 points, 14 of which came in the first three quarters.

Clobes struggled with foul trouble, sitting out nearly 7 minutes from the late third to the midway point of the fourth quarter.

The 6-foot-4 forward made his mark when he stepped back onto the floor, though. The senior dropped 15 of his game-high 29 points after reentering the game until the final whistle, including 10 in the fourth frame.

Teammate Matteo Sanciu chipped in with 10 points for SHAPE.

Spartan coach Brant Tryon credited the Raiders for coming away with the victory Friday.

“K-Town came out and went after it,” Brant Tryon said. “They dropped 3s that were essential 3s when they needed to. They got the ball inside to the big man; he capitalized when he needed to.

“We couldn’t hit from the free-throw line, and we couldn’t finish drives. It was a recipe for disaster.”

Girls

Kaiserslautern 63, SHAPE 39: They may have started the season hot, but out of the winter break, coach Natasha Riggins noticed the Raiders were a little sluggish.

And it showed during a win over SHAPE. Kaiserserlautern (6-0, 6-0) even trailed heading into the second quarter before finding its stride, dropping 21 and 28 points in the second and third periods.

“It could have been the jitters of coming back,” Riggins said. “We’ve been putting in that positive energy and letting them know that it’s not over until Euros are over.”

One of the players who sparked the Raiders was Hazel Sanders. The forward scored eight of her 14 points in the second quarter, including a 45-second stretch in which she scored on three consecutive possessions.

The Spartans (2-3, 2-3) tried to get Kaiserslautern’s Emma Arambula out of the paint, and Sanders filled in the void.

“Usually, I don’t really drive, but being the first game back, I wanted to show that I can do more,” Sanders said. “Especially the last game against Ramstein, I did really well, so I felt like I really had to do well again to prove myself.”

Once the Raiders got rolling, they proved to be too much to stop.

Katya von Eicken scored 18 of her 21 points during the middle two frames, and she started to up the pressure on defense. The senior guard also dished out nine assists and corralled eight rebounds.

Overall, Kaiserslautern forced 34 turnovers that turned into points on the other end.

“We’re playing toward our strengths,” Riggins said. “We’re looking to see what we can do on the court to try to dominate our opponents.”

Jessica Moon paced the Spartans with 21 points, while Gabriella Pembry chipped in with eight – all of which came during the fourth frame.

Outside of the slow start Friday, the Raiders continue to roll. Their average margin of victory so far this season is 31.5 points.

Still, the players and coaches are trying to keep themselves grounded as they try to chase a European championship next month in Wiesbaden.

“We need to be working together, really making sure we’re all on the same page,” Sanders said.

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