The Paynesville boys' basketball team earned their first victory of the season by rallying to defeat Sauk Centre 54-49 on Tuesday, Dec. 14. The Bulldogs, playing their first home game of the season before a parents' night crowd, trailed throughout the first three quarters, but outscored the Mainstreeters 24-7 in the fourth quarter to win.
At the start of the last eight-minute period, the Bulldogs were behind 42-30. The Bulldogs proceeded to score the first 15 points of the period to gain the lead, which the Streeters had held since the opening minutes. The tying basket was scored by senior Ryan Wall on a pass by sophomore Andrew Jones following his steal.
Wall keyed the fourth quarter comeback for the Bulldogs by scoring 12 points in the rally. He scored after rebounds, in the low post, and in transition. He finished with 15 points, 12 rebounds, and two steals for the game.
Both Wall and Jones knocked down two free throws in bonus situations to seal the win.
After nudging ahead in the first quarter, the Streeters opened the second quarter with a 17-4 run that saw them with their biggest lead at 27-12. The Bulldogs scored six points late in the half to close the deficit to 29-18. Sauk Centre maintained their double-digit lead during a seesaw battle in the third quarter.
Luc Trees and J.T. Koehn each added 13 points for the Bulldogs. Trees, who averaged 25 points in the first two games, drew a lot of attention from the Streeters' defense. He was constantly double-teamed and was the subject of a box-and-one defense in both halves. Trees led the team with five assists.
Koehn's aggressiveness showed on both ends of the floor. He grabbed eight rebounds and scored two important baskets after offensive rebounds. On defense, he had two block shots, two steals, and was involved in several loose ball plays that resulted in jump balls.
The Bulldogs used a 3-2 zone defense in the second half that forced Sauk Centre to shoot from the outside. The Mainstreeters made only one of ten three-pointers in the second half.
The Bulldogs, meanwhile, corrected their shooting woes in the second half. After making just three of 14 layups in the first half, they converted eight of 11 in the second half.
| Sauk Centre-- | 12 | 17 | 13 | 7 | - 49 |
| Paynesville-- | 8 | 10 | 12 | 24 | - 54 |
Paynesville 77
Maple Lake 64
The Bulldogs used a physical style, a good press break, and a huge advantage on the boards to beat nonconference foe Maple Lake 77-64 Thursday night at home.
After a relatively even first quarter, the Bullldogs took charge in the second, building a 20-point lead for a time. The Irish cut into that right before halftime, but the Bulldogs' 21-9 advantage led to a 42-26 halftime lead.
After intermission, the Bulldogs regained the advantage and led 56-33 at one point.
The Bulldogs pounded both the offensive and defensive boards, outrebounding the Irish 49-27. J.T. Koehn had 16 rebounds and three block shots for Paynesville, and Ryan Wall was also in double-digits for rebounds with 10.
Maple Lake tried to press, but the Bulldogs handled it very well and scored numerous layups in transition.
The Bulldogs aggressive defense got the Irish out of their offense flow. The Bulldogs made 19 steals, leading to several easy buckets for the Bulldogs. Luc Trees had four steals, and Logan Louis, Nathan Schutz, and T. J. Schultz added three.
The Bulldogs did commit 29 fouls, that sent the Irish to the line 50 times. They scored 30 points at the line.
The Bulldogs, by contrast, made 33 fields goals, in 67 attempts (nearly 50 percent). Trees led Paynesville with 23 points, on 10-15 shooting from the field. Koehn added 14 and Wall had 10.
The Bulldogs, now 2-2, hosted BBE last night. Both the varsity and B-squad teams will play at the Minnewaska Holiday Tournament on Monday and Tuesday, Dec. 27 and 28. The teams face Perham on Monday, with the B-squad at 5 p.m. and the varsity at 6:30 p.m.
| Maple Lake-- | 17 | 9 | 12 | 26 | - 64 |
| Paynesville-- | 21 | 21 | 14 | 21 | - 77 |