The Boone Central/Newman Grove Cardinals continued to fine-tune and gear up for the all-important post-season this past week, improving to 18-5 by notching road victories over a pair of challenging opponents.
“This was a great week for our teams, both varsity and junior varsity,” Coach Dan Zoucha praised after the decisions at Doniphan-Trumbull and Lutheran High Northeast. “We had great team play and work ethic in these wins.”
BC/NG, currently ranked #3 in Class C1 by the Omaha World-Herald, will close the 2012-13 regular season Friday, hosting Crofton in Albion for a Parents/Seniors Night contest (8 p.m.).
B. Central/N. Grove 47, Doniphan-Trumbull 45
Whew!
What started out as a runaway almost caught up with Boone Central/Newman Grove Tuesday, Feb. 5. The Cardinals needed a game-winning shot at the buzzer to escape with a 47-45 victory over host Doniphan-Trumbull after bolting to a 20-2 lead in the first quarter.
Tyler Hedlund hit a 3-point field goal and scored seven points, and Pierce Koch and Carter Johnson added 3-point baskets, as BC/NG thoroughly dominated the first eight minutes. The Cardinals then scored just 16 points, total, in the second and third quarters, and Doniphan-Trumbull clawed all the way back to tie the score with 1:20 to play.
Boone Central/Newman Grove made a big defensive stand, then missed a shot attempt in the closing seconds, with the rebound tipped out-of-bounds. With three seconds to play and one more chance, Boone Central/Newman Grove senior Hallick Lehmann received a nice feed in the lane and kissed the ball off the glass and through the net as time expired.
BC/NG 64, LHNE 47
Friday’s task seemed more daunting on the surface, as Boone Central/Newman Grove traveled to Norfolk to face Class C2 #4 Lutheran High Northeast (18-2).
The Cardinals got off to another fast start, however, and this time kept their momentum, answering a final Eagle charge in the second half and scoring an impressive 64-47 victory.
“Lutheran High had only two losses coming into the game. They have some good shooters and quick guards, and we knew we would have to play a very solid and complete game,” Zoucha noted. “From the opening tap, with a quick ‘and-1’ scoring play, we set the tone of the game.”
Hedlund established much of that tone with 11 first-quarter points, while Bremer added six inside and Koch dropped a 3-pointer. BC/NG led 23-13 at the end of the opening stanza and 35-23 at intermission.
Further details in Print & Online editions of Albion News
Add Comment