HUMBOLDT — Humboldt Middle School’s boys basketball fought hard and went 2-1 on Monday night against Cherryvale. The Cubs won the A game 23-20 and the B game 30-13, but lost in the two-quarter C game 13-4. The girls teams did not play due to a shortage of players for Cherryvale.
In the A game, Mason Sterling had himself a great night by getting 16 of the Cubs’ 25 rebounds as Humboldt once again dominated on the board. That coverage led to second-chance points for the Cubs, something that would come in handy late in the game. Both teams had a great effort in the first half, trading shots, and exchanging the lead.
The teams were tied at 14 at the half.
Humboldt came out in the second half on a mission and took over the game thanks to Creed Shannon who was 2-2 from deep.
Those six points from Shannon would prove to be big as Cherryvale tried to mount a charge late but couldn’t get past the Humboldt defense. The Chargers drove down the court, but once they got to the paint, the Cub defense stiffened and created bad shots and turnovers, giving Humboldt extra possessions and a chance to use up some of the clock late.
Cherryvale had a chance late and took three shots from the three point line as time expired but none of them went in to force overtime.
Shannon led the team with eight points. Collin Cook had seven and six rebounds. Sterling had six points and 16 rebounds. Thatcher Mueller had two points.
The B game was another story, as the Cubs didn’t have to worry about staving off a late charge, they controlled the game for the tip-off. Humboldt was once again strong in its fundamentals and outrebounded Cherryvale 26-18.
The Cubs’ offense came out firing early in the game while the defense locked the Chargers down.
Kreed Jones (1-1) and Hudson Rees (2-2) were both perfect from the field. Humboldt did not take a free throw throughout the game but did turn the ball over 17 times.
Usually, if you turn the ball over that much, it gives the other team a strong chance, but Humboldt’s defense was strong and prevented Cherryvale from converting the turnovers into points. Humboldt stole the ball 14 times to create extra possessions.
After a 16-5 lead at the half, Humboldt cruised to the win, continuing to lockdown Cherryvale’s offense, limiting the Chargers to five points in the third and just three in the fourth.
Grady Elder scored 12 points and had seven rebounds. Mueller had six points. Carson Russell and Rees had four each. Jones and Taner King both had two points.
Humboldt stumbled in the C game, falling behind early and never recovering. Cherryvale had a good size advantage and was able to use their size to play sound defense and force Humboldt to take uncomfortable shots. One positive in the C game was Taner King who went 1-1 from the field. Unfortunately, the rest of the team combined to go 1-13, dooming the Cubs. Humboldt did win on the boards though, outrebounding Cherryvale 10-8 but also turned the ball over 10 times.
“This is our A team’s fourth win in a row,” said HMS head coach Jeremy Weilert. “We are starting to put some things together but we have a big matchup next week.”
