JAMESTOWN — The Edgeley/Kulm-Montpelier Rebels got metaphorically punched in the face early in the fourth quarter and they were able to punch back and get a 64-49 win against the Carrington Cardinals on Monday, Feb. 27, at the Jamestown Civic Center.
The Rebels (11-9) opened the game on a 9-2 run before the Cardinals (12-9) cut into it at 15-9 with 20 seconds to go in the first quarter. However, the Rebels were able to push the lead out to 30-15 on a Braeden Kinzler three midway through the second quarter.
“We come out and play with a lot of energy,” Rebels head coach Kevin Strobel said. “(It) started with that press to just get things flowing and get them active. I think it worked, we were ready to roll, we didn’t want to be passive. So, the team played aggressive and they played hard.”
The Cardinals’ Grady Shipman hit a three early in the third to cut the deficit to 36-27 with 5:15 to go in the third. The Rebels were able to stretch the lead out to 42-29 with 3:30 to go in the third quarter before the Cardinals went on a huge run to cut the deficit to 44-38 at the end of the third.
The run continued into the fourth as the Cardinals’ Ryder Bickett hit a layup to cut the deficit to 44-42 with 6:33 to go in the game. The Rebels were able to stretch the lead out to 49-42 over the next few minutes and they were able to overcome another Cardinals run that saw their lead dwindle down to 53-46.
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Both teams struggled shooting the ball from deep in this game as the Cardinals shot 4-for-22 and the Rebels shot 5-for-19.
The Rebels try to win their first district championship since 2018 at 7:30 p.m. on Tuesday, Feb. 28. The Cardinals return to the floor at 4:30 p.m. on Feb. 28, when they take on Barnes County North.
“We’ve gotta head home and wake up and turn around and scratch and claw and find a way to get a win,” Cardinals head coach Tim Ranum said. “I don’t know what we gotta do if we gotta go like Pedro Cerrano in Major League and sacrifice a live chicken or something, I don’t know. We just gotta find a way to respond. I told the guys we gotta worry about it. I told them last week a goal in the district tournament is just to get out of it. So whatever way we gotta do that’s what we’re going to do.”
E/K-M 64, CHS 49
E/K-M: 17 13 14 20–64
CHS: 9 11 18 11–49
Points leaders:
E/K-M: Jacob Nitschke 17, Austin Strobel 15, Zeke Barnick 9
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CHS: Jack Erickson 13, Hudson Schmitz 13, Josh Bickett 8
Assists leaders:
E/K-M: Nitschke 3, Jaxon Buckeye 3, Joe Kramlich 2, Dylan Carlson 1, Braeden Kinzler 1, Strobel 1
CHS: Bickett 3, Schmitz 2, Jack Paulson 1, Grady Shipman 1
Leading rebounders:
E/K-M: Nitschke 13, Strobel 8, Kramlich 6
CHS: Erickson 11, Schmitz 8, Ryder Bickett 4
2023 District 5 Boys Basketball Tournament:
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Full Bracket Below:
First Round:
No. 1 Ellendale-bye
No. 4 LaMoure/Litchville-Marion 59 vs. No. 5 Barnes County North 32
No. 2 Carrington 66 vs. No. 7 Oakes 29
No. 3 Edgeley/Kulm-Montpelier 65 vs. No. 6 Griggs-Midkota 44
Second Round:
No. 5 Barnes County North-bye
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No. 6 Griggs-Midkota 57 vs. No. 7 Oakes 47
No. 4 LaMoure/Litchville-Marion 59 vs. No. 1 Ellendale Ellendale 51
No. 3 Edgeley/Kulm-Montpelier 64 vs. No. 2 Carrington 49
Third round:
No. 2 Carrington vs. No. 5 Barnes County North, 4:30 p.m.
No. 1 Ellendale vs. No. 6 Griggs-Midkota, 6 p.m.
No. 4 LaMoure/Litchville-Marion vs. No. 3 Edgeley/Kulm-Montpelier, 7:30 p.m.