Observations all along the line - Kimball & the Southern Panhandle First
Observations all along the line - Kimball & the Southern Panhandle First
The Banner County boys just weren’t able to hold off the Indians’ pressure in their game Friday, January 12.
“We played three and half quarters, and we just got tired. We were there. We just made mental mistakes,” Wildcats’ Head Coach Jim Wyatt said.
The Wildcats struggled offensively at the beginning of the game, unable to get on the board until 4:18 left to go in the first quarter with a drive by Kadan Huber off a pass from Brenton Soule. However, their defense was strong, keeping the Indians from penetrating into the paint for easy scores.
The Banner County offense was able to gain momentum in the second quarter with Mike McKown hitting a three pointer right out of the gate putting the score at 8-6 with the Wildcats in the lead. Banner County also started feeding off of each other. In one instance, Brenton Soule blocked the shot of Minatare’s Chance McAllister and hustled down the court to score off a pass by McKown.
The Wildcats were able to walk away from the first half with a five point lead leaving the score 20-15. It seemed as though the Wildcats would be ending the night with their second win of the season. However, the second half showed a complete shift of momentum.
The Indians cut down the Wildcats lead to one point with 7:07 to go in the third, overtaking the Wildcats on the next play leaving the score 21-20. Banner County briefly took back the lead with 4:14 to go, McKown cutting to the hoop and scoring off a pass from Soule leaving the score 22-21.
However, the Indians were able to overtake Banner County once again at the end of the third quarter, and the Wildcats weren’t able to rise again losing the game 59-41.
The Wildcats compete next in the MAC conference tournament this week. According to Ben Hostetler, their potential success in the tournament would hinge on taking away the lesson of this game: keep the energy going.
“We have to play a full four quarters. We can’t just work really hard in the first half. We can’t ever let up,” Hostetler said afterward.