Osage City’s one-two punch of Landon Boss and Orender proved too much Saturday for Landon Carson’s offensive brilliance for Iola High.
But, oh, what a show they put on for the smattering of parents in the stands for the first time this basketball season.
Boss and Orender combined to score 55 of Osage City’s 67 points, while Carson scored 33 for Iola in a 67-59 Indian victory.
The loss marks the Mustangs’ first of the season. Now, Iola’s boys are idle until Friday, after their opponent slated for Tuesday, Burlington, has been ordered to quarantine because of the COVID-19 pandemic.
“It’d be nice to get two more games in before the break,” Iola head coach Luke Bycroft said. “I’d like to get five games in before Christmas.”
Iola (2-1) is hoping to schedule a game against West Franklin before the state-mandated moratorium on games and practices begins Dec. 23 and runs through Jan. 7. The Mustangs will host Prairie View on Friday.
But before Bycroft looks too far into the future, it’s fitting to look back at Saturday’s offensive fireworks.
Boss put Osage City in the driver’s seat early as he scored 12 of the Indians’ 18 first-quarter points. The other six came from Orender on a pair of 3-pointers.
It was a combo the Mustangs struggled to stop the rest of the way.
The Osage City lead stood at 20-12 before Carson scored twice to trigger an 8-2 Mustang run. Sam Fager’s bucket midway through the period sliced the gap to 22-20, and Carson’s 3-point attempt on Iola’s next possession nearly gave the Mustangs the lead.
But Boss hit a pair of free throws before Orender connected once again from downtown. Gunnar Fort’s traditional 3-point play on Osage City’s next possession suddenly gave the Indians a 10-point lead.
“We didn’t rebound very well, especially in the first half,” Bycroft said. “We’d fight our way back, and then we’d give up a rebound or an open look. It could be something inside, or they’d get an open 3.”
Osage City extended its lead to as many as 12 before Tyler Boeken hit a free throw and then got inside for a bucket on Iola’s next trip. Carson’s steal and layup closed the gap to 37-30, before Boss converted a 3-point play inside to re-establish a 10-point lead.
The Mustangs missed out on an opportunity to put even more pressure on the Indians late in the period. Zach Louk drilled a 3-pointer as an Osage City was called for a foul elsewhere on the court, giving possession back to Iola.
But a bad pass turnover led to Orender’s 3-pointer to close the quarter, with Osage City up, 43-34.
Still, Iola would not go gently into that good night. Carson closed the gap to six with a 3-pointer at the 6:22 mark, then Dillon Bycroft’s jumper 30 seconds later had Iola within 47-42. Carson drew a charge on the Indians’ next trip, and then scored on the other end to pare the deficit to three.
