YATES CENTER — Humboldt High School’s boys basketball took on Iola in a non-tournament game at the Mid-Season Classic on Tuesday night. Humboldt came away victorious 51-45 despite a late Iola rally.
Tyler Boeken was back in play for Iola for the first time in two weeks. While Boeken didn’t have the offensive game that he would have liked, he provided a strong presence on the boards.
Humboldt started on a 7-4 run in the first, propelled by accurate shooting from Trey Sommer and great ball control by the Cubs. The Mustangs took a little while to warm up, but when they did, Iola turned up the heat.
Humboldt was up to the challenge, taking over to build a double-digit lead early in the second quarter.
Iola had a big issue in the first half with turnovers, giving Humboldt extra possessions which allowed the Cubs to build a solid lead. A big block by Sam Fager on a Humboldt layup energized the team and the Iola shooters began to hit better shots.
Humboldt led at the half 28-16.
The two teams went back and forth in the third, Humboldt maintaining its lead while Iola tried to close the gap. The Mustangs got it down to an 11-point deficit.
Iola mounted a charge in the fourth, going on a run that saw the Cubs’ lead down to 43-38 with just five minutes left. Iola continued to chip away, coming within four points with just under three minutes left thanks to a huge run by Fager, part of a 17-point night.
Iola couldn’t complete the comeback and fouled Humboldt down the stretch. Trey Sommer was perfect from the free throw line.
Three Cubs scored in double digits in the win. The Cubs got wide open shots all night, and were accurate enough to hit them. Couple that with Iola’s struggles turning the ball over, and it created a perfect storm for Humboldt.
“We told our kids at practice to bring their stuff with them today,” said Humboldt coach David Taylor. “You never know what is going to happen. It worked out. Iola didn’t have a game and I think the world of IHS head coach Luke (Bycroft) so this was a lot better than missing a game.”
Iola will play Cherryvale on Thursday at 8 p.m. Humboldt will play Anderson County at 5 p.m.
HUMBOLDT (14-14-9-14—51) McGowen 2/1-0-2-5 Ellie 0-1-1-1 Cook 3-2-3-8 Sommer 3-4-5-10 L. Page 0-1-1-1 G. Page 4-6-2-14 Slown 6-0-2-12 TOTALS 17/1-14-16-51
IOLA (8-8-10-19—45) Weide 4/1-1-2-12 Adams 2/1-1-5-7 Fager 6-5-4-17 Wanker 1-0-1-2 Riley 1-2-2-4 Leonard 0-2-2-2 Boeken 0-1-0-1 TOTALS 13/2-13-19-45
