Wildcat boys split two games to stay at .500 on the year

The Blair-Taylor High School boys basketball team played in two very different games last week, losing a nail biter to Eau Claire Immanuel Lutheran on Thursday before breezing by Brookwood on Saturday.

The Wildcats sit at 5-5 on the season and were scheduled for a busy week, hosting Gilmanton on Tuesday before traveling to Whitehall on Thursday and Alma Center Lincoln on Friday.

ECIL 58 B-T 52

A second half comeback bid for the visiting Wildcats fell just short in a clash with the host Lancers last Thursday.

Eau Claire Immanuel Lutheran started strong, hitting nine three-pointers in the first half to take a 33-16 lead into the break.

“We really dug a deep hole in the first half,” Blair-Taylor coach Randy Storlie told the Times. “They came out on fire in the first half and we shot the ball so badly.”

Blair-Taylor worked back into the game in the second half and trailed by just two points, 51-49, with four minutes left in the game.

The Wildcats had some looks but were unable to hit the tying shot, and the Lancers closed the game with success at the free throw line. Senior Cain Fremstad paced all scorers with 26 points.

“If just one of those shots late in the game would have rolled in and we could have taken the lead, maybe we could have completed the comeback,” Storlie said. “But it was a heck of an effort on the road to get back into the game by our guys.”

B-T (field goals/attempts-free throws/attempts-rebounds-points)—Kniseley 1/7-3/4-3-5, Obieglo 1/3-0/0-1-3, Kruse 2/7-0/1-4-4, Swanson 3/8-2/2-3-9, Fremstad 7/14-9/9-5-26, Nehring 2/7-0/4-3-5.

B-T 72 Brookwood 39

A 10-point lead at halftime on Saturday could have been bigger had the visiting Wildcats not missed numerous shots, coach Randy Storlie said, but the team’s fortunes flipped in the second half.

“We just had too many easy basket chances get away from us in that first half, and we challenged the guys at halftime to do better in the second half and they did,” Storlie said.

Blair-Taylor outscored the Falcons 41-18 in the second half to seal the win. Evan Nehring led the Wildcats with a double-double of 21 points and 13 rebounds. Fremstad added 16 points, and Jaren Swanson scored 11.

“I am so proud of the way the boys responded to our challenge and played together as a unit,” Storlie said.

B-T (field goals/attempts-free throws/attempts-rebounds-points)—Kniseley 3/8-0/0-3-9, Olson 0/1-0/0-0-0, Huseboe 1/3-0/0-1-3, Obieglo 1/4-0/0-3-2, Kruse 2/6-2/3-5-6, Swanson 4/10-0/0-2-11, Fremstad 6/15-1/2-8-16, Armitage 1/1-0/0-1-2, Smith 0/0-0/0-1-0, Nehring 9/13-2/2-13-21.