March 28, 2024

C-M boys start season with win over Lynnville-Sully

COLFAX — Colfax-Mingo’s basketball team likes to get out and run and push tempo. But when the Tigerhawks got up 47-42 early in the fourth quarter against Lynnville-Sully on Dec. 3, C-M head coach Mark Rague decided to slow things down.

Rague used only six players in the game and thought he needed to give his guys a rest on the offensive end of the floor.

The strategy worked for the Tigerhawks as they outscored the visiting Hawks 14-4 in the final frame and claimed a 59-46 victory during the season opener for both teams.

“Ultimately, I want to keep doing what has been successful and us slowing it down is not our forte,” Rague said. “But with our short numbers, I tried to manage things on the run the best we could.

“Slowing down and pulling it out was to give our guys a break on the offensive end.”

Lynnville-Sully weathered an early 10-0 hole and led 16-13 after one quarter.

But the Hawks struggled to make shots in the second half and the four-point fourth quarter was a big difference in the final outcome.

Both teams didn’t score for the first few minutes, but C-M scored the first 10 points of the game, including back-to-back 3-pointers by sophomore Cole Bracewell and junior Zach Steenhoek.

The Steenhoek triple triggered a timeout by Harthoorn, and the Hawks responded with an 11-0 spurt of their own.

L-S scored 16 of the final 19 points of the quarter and led 16-13 after one. Senior Kinnick McFarland buried two 3-pointers and senior Slater Young added a pair of buckets inside.

The Hawks got a triple from junior Mason Jansen to go up 19-13 early in the second. Bracewell responded with another trey and then senior Brady Berkey scored five in a row to get C-M back to within one. The Hawks led 28-26 at the break.

“L-S was able to come back from a 10-0 hole because it’s a good program and a program we are striving to become,” Rague said. “But I thought our kids did a nice job of taking it in the mouth and not folding. I thought we stuck together and helped each other. That was good to see.”

The two teams traded 3-pointers to begin the third. Seniors Zane Fraker and Blaize Kuhlmann hit treys between another 3-pointer by Bracewell.

The Hawks maintained their lead until back-to-back buckets by Berkey and a Bracewell trey put the Tigerhawks in front 42-38. Steenhoek’s 3-pointer at the end of the quarter put C-M ahead 45-40 after 24 minutes.

Bracewell started the fourth with a transition layup to extend the Tigerhawks’ lead to seven. L-S senior Bray Noun Harder answered with a pair of free throws, but a bucket inside by junior Jake Nichols got the advantage back to seven for C-M.

That’s when the Tigerhawks slowed things down and Berkey went to work from the free-throw line. The Tigerhawk senior hit 11 free throws in the game and eight of them came in the fourth quarter as C-M was pulling away. The only other points scored in the frame came on a pair of freebies by junior David Rague.

Berkey finished with a game-high 23 points and nine rebounds in the win.

Bracewell buried five treys and finished with a career-high 17 points and three rebounds. Steenhoek added three triples and 11 points with four rebounds. David Rague added six boards and Nichols pulled down five and scored six points.

“(Berkey) made some outstanding choices in terms of giving the ball up when it was the right thing to do and finishing at the rim when that was the right thing to do,” Coach Rague said. “His decision making was solid tonight.”

Colfax-Mingo (1-1 overall, 1-1 in the SICL) connected on 51 percent of its shots, hit eight 3-pointers and was 15-of-25 from the line.

Lynnville-Sully shot just less than 30 percent from the floor, was 5-of-21 from 3-point range and made 9-of-12 from the line.

Rague said the strategy defensively was to take away the Hawks’ outside shot. Kuhlmann averaged 10 points per game last year but was held to only three.

“Our goal, just like it is with any team, is to take away their strength,” Coach Rague said. “If their guys are spotted up from behind the line and open, they’ll make a decent number of those shots so we tried to make that a focal point. We tried to make them finish in the paint, going 100 miles per hour. Fortunately, it worked this time for us.”

Colfax-Mingo played at BGM on Dec. 10. The Tigerhawks host North Mahaska at 7:30 p.m. on Dec. 13 in Colfax.

Montezuma 81, Colfax-Mingo 46

Berkey scored 16 points and Bracewell put in 11 points, but Colfax-Mingo lost to one of the best teams in 1A on Dec. 6.

The Tigerhawks trailed by 15 at halftime but were outscored 45-25 in the second half during an 81-46 home loss to Montezuma.

Berkey and Bracewell both buried three 3-pointers. David Rague scored seven points. The Tigerhawks were 13-of-23 from the free-throw line.

Berkey grabbed three rebounds and dished out two assists, Rague had three assists and four steals and Nichols scored four points and grabbed five boards.

Junior A.J. Gibson pulled down four rebounds.

The Braves are 2-0 overall and 2-0 in the SICL.