The C, B, and Varsity teams would all be in action Thursday night in Slayton vs. the Adrian/ Ellsworth Dragons basketball teams. It would be a solid night for all squads as they each earned a victory.
The C-Team would get the night started off with a 36-26 win. Strong defense would be a key to their win, forcing 20 turnovers with 15 being steals. Only turning it over 12 times themselves the Rebels would have an efficient night in the turnover category. A balanced attack on offense would see 7 Rebels scoring. Gavin Gillette led with 8 points, Dawson Schreier would have 6, and so did Carson Engelkes. Andrew Holm would have 5, Hudson Schryvers and Jackson Kramer each had 4 and Dylan Kluis had 3.
The B-Squad would have a good night on both sides of the ball, putting up 59 points and holding Adrian/Ellsworth to 26. Forcing over 25 turnovers, with 21 steals and playing a fast pace would lead to many lay-ups in transition. Ross Engelkes would have a fantastic night leading the Rebels with 21 points, 7 steals, and 4 rebounds. Dylan Kramer would be in double digits as well with 12 points and Bryce Hoekman would deliver 9 for the team. Carter Lewis, Owen Gillette, Thomas Huso, Ben Ahlers, and Michael Risacher each earned their way into the point column.
The Varsity would finish the night off strong even though they got off to a bit of an auspicious start giving up a lay-up off the tip and following it up by passing a ball off the bottom of the backboard. MCC would go on a big run using an active full court press as Derek Kluis would put the Rebels on the board with a steal and finish on the other end in transition. Adrian/Ellsworth wouldn’t score again for the next 5 minutes as MCC would take control and build a 10 point lead at 15-5. Tanner Graphenteen ended the 15-3 run with a steal and layup.
Offensive rebounding would be a big key for MCC on this night and rebounding in general as the Rebels gobbled up 35 rebounds and 18 of them being on the offensive end to A/E’s 20 total rebounds. Chant Mitchell, Nate Kleven, and Christian Tentinger would each grab 8 rebounds a piece and Derek Kluis earned 5, with 4 coming on the offensive end.
Even though it felt like MCC took control of the game, A/E would battle. They would find themselves on the free throw line frequently, shooting 9 first half free throws. The Dragons would connect on a couple 3’s and MCC would go cold for a couple minute stretch. In need of a spark, the Rebels found it at the right time in the name of Connor DeGreef. DeGreef would come in ready to fire away as soon as he touched the ball. Tanner Graphenteen would push in transition and find a trailing Chant Mitchell who would attack the defense, collapsing it and kicking to DeGreef in the left corner. Connor would catch, shoot, and connect. Adrian/Ellsworth would continue to chip away and pull to within 8 points before DeGreef would strike again from the same spot on the floor. This time it was a deep 2, but a well needed shot as the team was not able to score consistently.
With the score at 28-20 with 15 seconds left, MCC had one last opportunity to grab some momentum before half. Aidan Dierks would find Chant Mitchell with a nice post entry pass, just over the fronting defender for the easy two right before half. Putting MCC up 10 again at 30-20 at the break.
The second half would not get off to a great start as like the start of the game when they gave up a lay-up off the tip, the Rebels would give up a lay-up on their first defensive possession. But on the Rebels first offensive possession, solid ball movement would lead to a Christian Tentinger 3 to answer back from the right wing. Adrian/Ellsworth would score the next points going 1-2 from the free throw line, but then MCC would take control of the game.
The Rebels turned up the defensive pressure, making it difficult for the Dragons to set up any offense and MCC started to impose their size with offensive rebounds and put backs. At the 12:15 mark, Chant Mitchell found Tanner Graphenteen in the right corner for the wide open three, Graphenteen nailed it and the Rebels were up 43-25, starting the half on a 13-5 run. Shortly after Aidan Dierks would connect on an acrobatic transition lay-up over a much taller defender to put the Rebels up 20 with 10:47 left to play. The Dragons would answer back with an And-1 by Peyton Lewis, the 6-4 senior, but Dierks would strike again and answer the and-1 with a three point make from the right wing. From there the Rebels would finish the game on a 18-8 run to put the game out of reach and secure their first home win of the season. The Rebels moved to 2-2 on the year.
Scoring: Tanner Graphenteen: 13 points, Derek Kluis: 10 points, Nate Kleven: 9 points, Chant Mitchell and Aidan Dierks: 8 points each. Rebounding Leaders: Chant Mitchell: 9 Rebounds, Christian Tentinger: 8 Rebounds, Derek Kluis 5 Rebounds. Assist Leaders: Derek Kluis: 5, Chant Mitchell: 4 Steals Leaders: Tanner Graphenteen: 4, Derek Kluis and Christian Tentinger: 3 each.
