Tesdahl, C-I shine in boys' basketball
Late surge buries rival Cardinals
CROSBY - Stars gleamed bright Friday night inside the Ranger gym as a classic Mid-State Conference basketball game unfolded before a near packed crowd.
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In the end, Crosby-Ironton's all-time leading scorer shined brightest as Bryce Tesdahl scored seven of his 18 points in the Rangers' final 11-2 run translating into a 68-61 victory over the Staples-Motley Cardinals.
Staples-Motley's Jordan Riewer (left) and Derek Wolhowe battled with Derek Swanhorst of the Crosby-Ironton Rangers for a loose ball in Friday's game at Crosby. » Purchase reprints of this photo.
Brainerd Dispatch/Clint Wood
For most of the second half it was the threesome of Derek Wolhowe, Caleb Nurnberger and Jordan Riewer that controlled the pace. S-M's big three combined to score 51 of S-M's 61 points and all but two of its 31 second-half points.
Wolhowe shot 5-of-6 from the field in the second half, including four three-pointers. His last two gave S-M a 59-57 lead with 4:02 remaining.
Rangers 68, Cardinals 61
Key: The Rangers outscored Staples-Motley 11-2 to cap a seven-point victory
Conf: CI 7-0, SM 4-3
Overall: CI 19-0, SM 11-7
Next: Crosby-Ironton at Proctor 7:30 p.m. Tuesday, Staples-Motley at Sauk Centre 7:30 p.m. Tuesday
But Tesdahl took over with his seven-point spurt and Joe McLaughlin's tip-in off an offensive rebound helped C-I seize a 64-61 lead. A Derek Swanhorst field goal and two Tesdahl free throws sealed the win.
"Joe's tip in was huge," said Tesdahl, who added eight assists. "He was just sitting there waiting and if it wasn't for that offensive rebound and tip in that whole game could have changed.
Staples-Motley Cardinals senior guard Caleb Nurnberger (11) drove hard into Bryce Tesdahl of the Crosby-Ironton Rangers in Friday's game at Crosby.» Purchase reprints of this photo.Brainerd Dispatch/Clint Wood
"They're a good team and shot the ball well. It was good for us to play in a game like this because it's just going to help in the long run."
Nurnberger, who came into Friday's game 48 points shy of 1,000 for his career, scored nine of his game-high 19 in the second half. All nine came in the first five minutes helping S-M erase a 35-30 halftime deficit and take a 47-43 lead.
C-I answered with a 10-0 run with field goals from Mark Hoge and Kody Bartels and back-to-back 3-pointers from Trevor Dickie and Tesdahl.
Swanhorst also scored 18 points for the Rangers, four of which came after offensive rebounds. C-I finished with 11 offensive boards and scored 10 second-chance points. The Rangers outrebounded S-M 37-23, with Swanhorst tallying 16 for C-I.
Crosby-Ironton Rangers senior guard Bryce Tesdahl (center) charged through Jordan Riewer (32) and Denis Shatilov of the Staples-Motley Cardinals in an attempt to score in Friday's game at Crosby.» Purchase reprints of this photo.
Brainerd Dispatch/Clint Wood
"Once they hit a few shots early in that second half that just carried on through the rest of the game," said Ranger head coach Dave Galovich. "I give them a lot of credit. Those kids hit some tough shots at different times. Nurnberger, Riewer and Wolhowe in the second half, I thought they were very good from the perimeters."
S-M shot 50 percent from the field in the second half. A surprising number considering S-M didn't make its first field goal until 7:17 of the first half. By then it trailed 24-4.
But the Cardinals closed the half with a 16-5 run to climb to within five. Riewer scored all five of his first-half points during that time.
Staples-Motley Cardinals coach Lynn Peterson collapsed to the court after watching his team's performance against Crosby-Ironton early in Friday's game at Crosby.» Purchase reprints of this photo.
Brainerd Dispatch/Clint Wood
"We were very tentative on offense," said Cardinals head coach Lynn Peterson. "After the third time timeout I finally just told them, 'you guys need to attack the basket and have some fun. This is what this game is about. Start loosening up and get after things a little bit and we'll work our way back into it.' And we did."
The loss ends S-M's four-game winning streak, but gives the 11-7 Cardinals a boost of confidence.
"We were down 24-4 to the top-ranked team in the state we need to realize how good we can be," said Peterson. "From that aspect that's a very positive thing. It's still going to come down to the fact that this isn't the first time this has happened to us meaning getting beat on a rebound. Overall I'm very proud of the way the kids played."
The Rangers remain unbeaten at 19-0 and 7-0 in the conference. The close game will help them come March.
"Close games are definitely going to help us along," said Tesdahl. "Come tournament time it's going to be different from the regular season. People see that one seed in front of your name and it's a whole different story."
Staples-Motley 30 31 - 61
Crosby-Ironton 35 33 - 68
STAPLES-MOTLEY
Mike Lindamann 2, Caleb Nurnberger 19, Derek Wolhowe 18, Jordan Riewer 14, Denis Shatilov 8. Team totals: FG 22-51 (43 percent), FT 8-10 (80 percent), 3-point baskets: 9-21 (Wolhowe 4, Riewer 2, Nurnberger 3).
CROSBY-IRONTON
Trevor Dickie 9, Bryce Tesdahl 18, Kody Bartels 10, Derek Swanhorst 18, Joe McLaughlin 9, Mark Hoge 5. Team totals: FG 28-54 (52 percent), FT 7-13 (54 percent), 3-point baskets: 5-14 ( ).
Rebounds: CI 37 (Swanhorst 16); SM 23. Steals: CI 5 (Dickie 3), SM 6. Turnovers: CI 10, SM 10. Assists: CI 18 (Tesdahl 8, Dickie 6), SM 5. Blocks: CI 1 (Hoge).
JEREMY MILLSOP may be reached at jeremy.millsop@brainerddispatch.com or 855-5856.