CLEVELAND – NRHEG stayed right with the Clippers for a half before Cleveland pulled away at Cleveland Dec. 4.
NRHEG struggled with its shooting in every facet. The Panthers shot 34 percent from the field, made only 5-23 shots behind the arc and were 4-14 from the free throw line.
“We will have to shoot the ball much better than that to be competitive,” said Churchill. ‘We will probably have a tough time scoring a lot of points at the start of the year so need to knock down open looks when we get them.”
Spencer Tollefson led the Panthers with 16 points, making a pair of three-pointers. Nic Mangskau tossed in 11 points, while sophomores Kevin Kalis and Trevor Tracy added nine and eight points respectively. Tracy also drilled a pair of threes and handed out four assists, one more than Mangskau and Noah Krell.
Tom Kraft poured in 27 points to pace Cleveland. Josh Plonsky scored 12 and Kyle Ziebarth 11.
NRHEG hauled down 39 rebounds, 16 on the offensive end. Kalis grabbed 11 for the Panthers, Tollefson speared six and Tracy, Mangskau and Krell pulled down four apiece. NRHEG was guilty of 13 turnovers in its opening game.
Kenyon-Wanamingo
KENYON – It was the same story in game number two for the Panthers. They played a strong first half, but could not keep it up, falling 68-50 in Kenyon last Thursday. The Knights evened their record at 1-1.
The hot shooting of Tollefson carried NRHEG in the opening half as the Panthers trailed 23-22 at the break. NRHEG was up five in the half with about five minutes remaining.
The Panther defense could not contain K-W in the final half. The Knights had four players score seven or more points in the final 18 minutes, led by Brad Rostad’s 13 points.
Kenyon switched to a 3-2 zone in the second half and the Panthers struggled against it.
“They are long and athletic and were tipping a lot of our passes,” said Churchill. “We turned the ball over way too often.”
Only four players scored for the Panthers in the final half, and they also committed 13 turnovers.
NRHEG shot 39 percent from the floor, but only got off 39 shots. The Panthers were 8-15 behind the arc.
Tollefson buried three triples on the way to a 21-point night for NRHEG. He also topped the team with four assists.
Macoy Schwierjohann scored 10 points, eight in the final half, and Tracy tossed in seven, including a pair of three-pointers.
Rostad and Taylor Floren pumped in 18 points apiece to pace Kenyon-Wanamingo. Sam Roosen flipped in 12 points and Jordan Ryan added eight.
The Panthers nailed eight three-pointers in the game, compared to two for K-W.
NRHEG could connect on only 2-9 free throws, compared to 6-10 for the Knights. The Panthers did not shoot a free throw in the first half.
Tollefson pulled down five rebounds. Rostad grabbed nine for Kenyon. NRHEG had 24 turnovers.
“Our young guards have to make some shots, and we have to become more aggressive underneath,” said Churchill. “Our sophomores have improved a lot since last season, but it is a big jump to varsity ball. We have to work hard and get better every day.”
NRHEG opens conference play at Faribault BA Friday.
Cleveland 69, NRHEG 55
NRHEG 28 27 55
Cleveland 33 36 69
NRHEG (55): Tollefson 16, Mangskau 11, Kalis 9, Tracy 8, Goette 5, Krell 3, Schendel 2, White 1, Schwierjohann 0, Peterson 0. FG: 23-66 (34%, 5-23 3-pters.), FT: 4-14 (29%). PF-10, TP-55.
Kenyon 68, NRHEG 50
NRHEG 22 28 50
Kenyon 23 45 68
NRHEG (50): Tollefson 21, Schwierjohann 10, Tracy 7, Mangskau 5, Kalis 5, Goette 2, FG: 20-39 (51%, 8-15 3-pters.), FT-2-9 (22%), PF – 13, TP – 50.
NEXT: Friday – NRHEG at Faribault BA, 7:15 p.m.
