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NB falls to Cambridge, rebounds over DuluthThe North Branch boys basketball squad opened its season by splitting a pair of non-conference games last week. The Vikes lost 70-59 to Cambridge-Isanti Dec. 5 but rebounded to defeat Duluth-Central 67-53 last Saturday. ìIt was a typical first weekend,î Head Coach Bill Baumann said. ìCambridge has a very good team and it was a very good game. ìBoth teams made mistakes but for the most part it was a very well played game for a first game of the season. We were grateful to have another game right away so we could redeem ourselves and we were better defensively against Duluth.î The Vikes and Bluejackets played a very even first quarter with Cambridge taking a 12-11 lead after one. The teams exchanged the lead early in the second quarter before the Bluejackets went on a 15-5 run to take a 29-20 lead. Both teams hit field goals and three pointers over the last minute of the half to give the Bluejackets the 34-25 advantage at the break. ìWe made a few defensive mistakes and you canít do that against a good team,î Baumann said. ìCambridge is a very experienced team and they execute well. We dug ourselves a hole early in the second quarter and we really had our work cut out for us.î Cambridge was able to extend its lead to 15 points midway through the third, when the Vikings made a run to cut the lead to 5 with 46 seconds to go. The Bluejackets came back with 5 points to end the quarter with a 55-45 lead. North Branch made another run early in the fourth, cutting the lead to 4 with 5 minutes left, but missed a shot and Cambridge converted on a fast break to stop the Vikesí rally on the way to a 70-59 win. ìI was pleased with our effort in the game,î Baumann said. ìWe could have folded when we were down 15 points but we rallied and cut the lead to four and had the ball.î Senior Matt Fletcher paced the Vikes as he scored 20 points and 8 rebounds. Seniors Britt Baumann and Matt Nelson had 13 points each and senior Jake Anderson added 9. Senior Bowie McClaskie added 4 points, and Baumann notched 5 assists. The Vikes jumped out to a 20-12 lead after one quarter against Duluth the next day. North Branch kept the pressure on and increased its lead to 36-23 at the half. ìWe had some lapsed against Cambridge and we wanted to put more pressure on the ball.î The second half started out much like the first as the Vikings continued to apply the defensive pressure, increasing the lead to 57-35 after three quarters. With the game in hand by early in the fourth quarter both teams played pretty even and emptied their benches as the Vikes were able to come away with a 67-53 victory. ìWe started to get more comfortable with our rotation in the Duluth game,î Baumann said. ìWe had a lot of players seeing their first action against Cambridge and they got into the flow much better in the Central game." Baumann said the team should continue to improve as the players get more time together on the court. He has already seen improvement from players including seniors Ben Stenberg and McClaskie and juniors Greg Moriarty and Al Moore. Fletcher again led the offense with 16 points and 9 rebounds. Nelson and Baumann each has 12 points and Anderson added 11. McClaskie came up with 8 points and junior Tony Beaver added 6. Baumann and Anderson had 6 assists apiece. This week, the Vikings were scheduled to travel to White Bear Lake Tuesday and then open Rum River Conference play at Princeton Thursday, Dec. 11. The squad returns home Tuesday, Dec. 16 to host Mora. ©ECM Post Review |