Panthers split RVC games

BOYS BASKETBALL

     Monticello battled a strong Camanche team for most of a Dec. 6 home game, and then went on the road Dec. 9 to defeat North Cedar in River Valley Conference boys basketball action last week.

     The Panthers (2-2, 2-2) lost to Camanche 68-54 before beating North Cedar 48-43.

     Monticello was competitive with Camanche for three quarters. The Indians took a 17-13 lead by the end of the first quarter, but the Panthers came back to lead 32-30 at halftime. A pair of consecutive put-back baskets by Jordan Breashears and Andy Tjaden were part of Monticello’s 19-13 second quarter edge.

     “I thought we played really hard, and if you play hard, good things will happen,” Lambert said. “Our size and aggressivness on the offensive glass have been factors in all of our games.”

     Camanche went on a 10-1 run in the first three minutes of the third quarter, and led 52-46 with one period to play. The Indians then outscored Monticello 11-2 in the first 4:03 of the fourth quarter to take control.

     In all, the Panthers were outscored 38-22 in the second half against Camanche.

     “Camanche is big and athletic,” the coach said. “They cause disruptions because of their length and athleticism.

     “They started that run and we never really got it back. We have to learn that you can’t take a second off in a varsity game. When you do, the other team will score.

     “We’ve got to tighten up defensively,” the coach added.

     A big first half was one of the keys to the 48-43 victory for Monticello at North Cedar Friday, Dec. 9. Monticello jumped to a 12-6 lead by the end of the first quarter, and extended it to 12 points, 27-15, at halftime.

     North Cedar came back in the third quarter to get within three, but the Panthers were able to open up a larger lead and come away with the win.

     “In the third quarter I thought our defense was not very good,” Lambert said. “But we did some good things in the fourth quarter. We needed some big buckets, and we executed the sets we wanted. We did what we needed to do to win.”

     Alex Nealson came off the bench to score 14 points and grab six rebounds, leading the team in both categories. Nealson shot 6-for-8 from the field.

     Jacob Manternach scored 12 points. Kyle Sperfslage had seven points and four steals. Tjaden also had seven points.

Anamosa rescheduled

     The Panthers were also supposed to play at Anamosa Dec. 10, but the game was postponed due to weather conditions. It has been rescheduled for Jan. 19.

Dec. 6

Cam      17  13  22  16 – 68

Monti   13  19  14    8 – 54

     CAMANCHE (68) – Dev Patel 8-12 1-2 19, Tre Austin 1-5 0-0 2, Dakota Soenksen 6-15 7-8 23, Dylan Hundley 2-10 3-4 8, David Gonzalez 0-0 0-4 0, Cameron Soenksen 5-13 0-0 13, Evan Hall 1-2 0-0 3, Cade Borrison 0-0 0-0 0, Carson Seeser 0-0 0-0 0, Calvin Ottens 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 23-57 11-18 68.

     MONTICELLO (54) – Avery Martensen 5-7 0-0 11, Jacob Manternach 3-12 3-5 10, Jordan Breashears 2-6 0-0 4, Andy Tjaden 5-7 2-4 12, Kyle Sperfslage 4-13 6-6 15, Alex Nealson 1-1 0-0 2, Taylor Manternach 0-1 0-0 0, Devin Kraus 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 20-47 11-15 54.

     Three-pointers: D. Soenksen 4, C. Soenksen 3, Patel 2, Hundley, Hall; Martensen, J. Manternach, Sperfslage.

     Rebounds: Monticello 36 (Breashears 10, Tjaden 8, Martensen 7), Camanche 32.

     Total fouls: Camanche 15, Monticello 14.

Dec. 9

Monti     12  15   8  13 – 48

NC           6    9  17  11 – 43

     MONTICELLO (48) – Avery Martensen 2-6 1-2 6, Jacob Manternach 6-13 0-0 12, Jordan Breashears 0-2 0-0 0, Andy Tjaden 2-3 3-6 7, Kyle Sperfslage 3-11 0-1 7, Alex Nealson 6-8 2-5 14, Taylor Manternach 0-1 2-5 2, Ryan Manternach 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 19-44 8-19 48.

     Three-pointers: Martensen, Sperfslage.

     Rebounds: Monticello 30 (Nealson 6, Martensen 5, Tjaden 5, Sperfslage 5.

     Total fouls: Monticello 19.