Mustangs fight to final horn, fall in Class A state quarters in first-ever appearance
· Yahoo Sports
Mar. 12—MINNEAPOLIS — The Mustangs were down by eight points heading into halftime. It felt like they were down by a single possession.
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Momentum swings were aplenty in the first half of the Class A quarterfinal against Central Minnesota Christian School on Thursday evening. The Northome/Kelliher girls basketball team took an early advantage before CMCS took control, stretching its lead to 13.
But the Mustangs never blinked. They cut the lead down to two points before entering halftime, trailing 45-37.
With how unpredictable the game had been up to that point, it was still a toss-up between the two teams.
But by the beginning of the second half, CMCS took a stranglehold on the game. It led by double digits throughout the latter frame, always responding to anything N/K threw at it en route to an 82-69 win at Maturi Pavillion.
"I think we played tough right away, started quick and then just couldn't make a lot of shots," N/K head coach Kevin Waldo said. "It was kind of a back-and-forth game, but (we had) a stretch where we just couldn't hit a shot in the first half and got down by 12, 13 points. And against a good team like that, it was hard to come back and get buckets on them and get stops."
N/K's loss wasn't because of its lack of fan support. Mustang fans were loud and proud in the Maturi Pavilion's south side of the court, supporting the team's first state tournament appearance.
"I mean, we travel a long ways to play our section," Waldo said. We play in Thief River Falls three times, two hours (away) and we have fans show up. And then today, I mean, we were at some of the games last night. It looked like we had more fans here tonight than a lot of those bigger schools.
"So we're super proud of the turnout, and we just wish that we could have came out on top. But, you know, it's basketball, and the other team is playing just as hard as we are."
Senior Kate Thayer did what she did best: stealing the basketball and scoring. She finished the night with 12 steals, more than anyone on the floor, and 29 points, despite getting a lot of attention from the CMCS defense.
She was partly responsible for N/K's blink-and-you 'll-miss-it start. Allison Lundin sank a 3-pointer, followed by Thayer stealing the inbound pass for a quick layup for a lightning-fast 5-0 spurt.
"One of the coaches we played the other day said, 'You can put Kate on your roster as 5(-foot-)5, or whatever she is, but you might as well put her as 6(-foot), because that's how she plays," Waldo explained.
CMCS didn't gain firm control of the lead until eight minutes left in the first half. That's when senior Kylee Binkley got hot from above the arc, going 4-for-7 from outside in the first half, leading the Mustangs back into the game.
By the second half, it caused the Blue Jays to make adjustments defensively, focusing on shutting down Binkley.
"I thought our zone in the second half, obviously, we got a number of nice quality players and shooters and drivers, but we did a better job of getting our assignments and making sure Binkley was (heavily contested) in the second half," CMCS head coach Brian Nelson said. "Both Addie (Taatjes) and Peighton (Mulder) inside did a good job of contesting."
The Blue Jays took a double-digit lead 24 seconds into the latter frame and rode it to the end, led by the one-two punch of Dienna Duininck's 30 points and Emma Braem's 21.
Nelson tipped his cap to the N/K defense, who made things physical and difficult for the Blue Jay offense.
"The game was tough, hats off to them. They're a really physical team, fast team," he said. "You probably haven't seen the speed that they had played with tonight, maybe the defensive physicality that they played with. It was a testament to our girls, they were tough."
The Mustangs will now play in the consolation bracket at the Gangelhoff Center on the campus of Concordia-St. Paul. They will play Mayer Lutheran on Friday at noon, with the winner going to the consolation final on Saturday at 8 a.m.
"This group of kids, I mean, not to say they made our job easy, but they do," Waldo said. "They're a great group of kids. They work their butt off. They're the hardest-working kids in the gym."
Waldo also noted that, despite graduating some impactful seniors in the spring, the soon-to-be varsity newcomers are promising.
"I think these are the girls who have led that program to be where it is," Waldo continued. "And, you know, a lot of them are sitting there and they're playing, they're on the bench tonight, watching the game, and they want to get back here. They have that drive to want to be back here."
Central Minnesota Christian School 82, Northome/Kelliher 69
CMCS 45 37 — 82
NK 37 32 — 69
Central Minnesota Christian School — Duininck 30, Braem 21, C. Mulder 11, Vander Ark 8, P. Mulder 8, Rosen 4. Totals: 31-56 FGs, 5-10 3-pt, 15-19 FTs.
Northome/Kelliher — Thayer 29, Binkley 17, Beuntemeier 10, Hallstrom 6, Lundin 5, Poxleitner 2. Totals: 21-64 FGs, 8-22 3-pt, 19-31 FTs.