The MCC Rebel Boys Basketball team hadn’t played a game since December third when they beat Sleepy Eye Public but seventeen days between contests the Rebels were finally back on the court. MCC traveled to Ellsworth to take on the Dragons of Adrian Ellsworth in the team’s first Red Rock Conference game of the season. The Dragons have been the busier team so far this season as they entered the game with a 0-4 record compared to the Rebel’s 1-1. MCC would take a couple of minutes to warm up but when they did the Dragons couldn’t keep up.
The Dragons started the game strong, leading early with a basket by Mechak Ndikubuntu followed by a three by Brock Henning and a couple of free throws by Aiden Tweet. The Rebel’s first lead of the game wouldn’t come until the 14:25 mark in the first half. The Rebels turned things around with their defense as Tanner Graphenteen would collect four steals in the first six minutes of the game and would score seven quick points. The Rebels were able to create scoring chances by creating turnovers. The Dragons turned the ball over 16 times in the first half and MCC scored on over half of them. Tanner Graphenteen led the Rebels by scoring 17 first-half points and when he slowed down Christian Tentinger added 9. The Rebels would get a Derek Kluis corner three-point shot as time expired to go into the locker room with a 41 to 18 lead.
The second half would start slowly for both teams but over the first eight minutes of the half, the Rebels would extend their lead to over 30 points. Graphenteen again would lead the attack scoring seven early points and Kluis would knock down another 3 as the Rebels extended their lead. The Rebels remained in control of the game and as the Rebels rotated in their second string and later they’re third against the Dragons’ starting lineup Adrian Ellsworth would make a comeback getting within 19 points. Aiden Tweet had a great second half scoring 18 second-half points while the rest of the Dragons scored 11 points total. The Rebels would win 66 to 47 in a game that wasn’t as close as the score would indicate.
The Rebels really dominated the pace of play but with the late turnovers in the second half, the Rebels only won the turnover battle by 4, 24 to 20. MCC outshot the Dragons 42% to 32% from the field. MCC was led by Tanner Graphenteen who finished with a team-high 24 points while Bryce Hoekman and Christian Tentinger scored 11 points each. Hoekman led the Rebels with 9 rebounds and Tentinger added 6. Aiden Tweet led the Dragons with 23 points while Dawson Frodermann added 7. The Rebels’ next game is scheduled for Thursday night weather permitting.
