Montevideo scored 43 first-half points and had four players in double figures during a 77-54 victory over Minnewaska Area last Tuesday night  in the WCC opener at Montevideo.

The Lakers scored 32 points in the first half to trail just 43-32 at halftime, but Montevideo kept up the pressure in the second half, scoring 34 more points, while the Lakers would add only 22 more, giving the Thunderhawks the big 23-point win.

Minnewaska Area also lost at home to Sauk Centre, Friday, 64-44, falling to 0-3 overall and 0-2 in the conference to start the season.

“We didn’t defend the dribble drive well enough tonight and that really hurt us,” said first-year head coach Zach Traphagen after the loss at  Montevideo.  “We did some nice things offensively, especially in the first half, but give Monte credit, they are a really nice team.

“We played another great opponent (Sauk Centre), Friday, but struggled shooting the ball,” coach Traphagen said.  “Time to turn the page and get better before playing our next game.”  

This week, the Lakers have just one game scheduled, a WCC contest at Morris Area-CA, set for Thursday, Dec. 14.

Montevideo 77, Waska 54

Montevideo hit nine three-pointers on the way to a 77-54 victory over Minnewaska Area last Tuesday night.  The Thunderhawks, who led 43-32 at intermission, also made 10-of-16 free-throws, while the Lakers were just 6-of-15.

Montevideo had four players score in double figures.  Gannon Reidinger had 18 points and nine rebounds, Devin Ashling had 16 points and eight boards, Griffin Epema added 12 points and Cooper Dack had 10.

Those 56 points were two more than the Lakers scored all night.  Minnewaska shot 38 percent from the field (20-of-52), including 8-of-22 on three-pointers.

Tenzin Dahl led nine Laker players in the scoring column with 16 points, three rebounds and two steals, while Alex Panitzke added nine points and three assists, and Marc Gruber had eight points and two boards.

The Lakers struggled inside against Montevideo, ending the game with just 20 rebounds.

Connor Frey hit a pair of 3-pointers for six points, while Dylan Alexander had five points, five assists, three steals and a team-high six rebounds, Owen Meulebroeck had four points, and Ryland Martin, Levi Johnson and Zach Palmer each scored one basket for two points.

Sauk Cen 64, Waska 44

The Lakers dropped their third-straight game to start the season, losing at home to Sauk Centre, Friday, 64-44.  Minnewaska Area shot just 22 percent from the field (14-for-62), including just 8-of-34 on two-point tries.

Nine different players hit the scoring column for Minnewaska, but none of them scored more than seven and only one player (Austin Ballhagen, who was 1-for-1), shot better than 50 percent from the field.

Dylan Alexander had a good all-around game with seven points, nine rebounds and two assists and Tenzin Dahl had seven points along with five boards and four steals.

Connor Frey added six points, going 6-of-7 from the line, while Levi Johnson also had six points, Ryland Martin scored five, Zach Palmer had four points and six rebounds, and Alex Panitzke had four points, three assists and six boards.

at Monte 77, Waska 54

Waska (0-2) 32 22 — 54

Montevideo 43 34 — 77

WASKA stats:  20-52 FG (8-22 3pt); 6-15 FT; 16 assists; 20 rebounds; 9 steals; 13 fouls; 10 turnovers . . . Scoring:  Tenzin Dahl 16, Alex Panitzke 9, Marc Gruber 8, Connor Frey 6, Dylan Alexander 5, Owen Meulebroeck 4, Ryland Martin 2, Levi Johnson 2, Zach Palmer 2 . . . Rebounding:  Alexander 6, Dahl 3, Jack Majerus 2, Jacob Mrnak 2, Gruber 2, Austin Ballhagen 2. . . Assists:  Alexander 5, Panitzke 3, Martin 2, Majerus 2 . . . Steals:  Alexander 3, Dahl 2

MONTE stats:   Scoring:  Gannon Reidinger 18, Devin Ashling 16, Griffin Epema 12, Cooper Dack 10 . . . Rebounding:  Reidinger 9, Ashling 8 . . . Other stats not available

—————————————

Sauk Cen 64, Waska 44

Sauk Centre — 64

Minnewaska (0-3) — 44

WASKA stats:  14-62 FG (6-28 3pt); 10-14 FT; 8 assists; 37 rebounds; 7 steals; 18 fouls; 6 turnovers. . . Scoring:   Tenzin Dahl 7, Dylan Alexander 7, Levi Johnson 6, Connor Frey 6, Ryland Martin 5, Alex Panitzke 4, Zach Palmer 4, Jack Majerus 3, Austin Ballhagen 2 . . . Rebounding:  Alexander 9, Marc Gruber 7, Panitzke 6, Palmer 6, Dahl 5, Martin 2 . . . Assists:  Panitzke 3, Alexander 2 . . . Steals:  Dahl 4

SC stats:   Stats not available

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