YATES CENTER — The Humboldt High boys basketball team held on to defeat Yates Center Friday night, improving their unblemished record on the year to 5-0. But it wasn’t easy.
The visiting Cubs controlled the first two quarters, establishing a 10-point cushion going into half-time, helped largely by an aggressive defense in the half court set and a balanced scoring attack from upperclassmen Rhett Smith, Jake Haviland and Rayce Hoepker (who ended the night with 13, 15 and 15, respectively.)
But the opening possession of the second half — a long-drawn-out play which found Yates Center freshman Aaron King open for a three-pointer at the top of the key — should have hinted to the Cubs what was in store.
Yates Center outscored Humboldt 18 to 11 in the third quarter, narrowing Humboldt’s lead to three (41-38) to start the final period. And it was more of the same through much of the fourth quarter.
The Wildcats’ late surge arrived in the shape of the 6-1 King, who led all scorers on the night with 20. The slashing King was able to find the basket at will and, in the game’s final minutes, proved to be, as his name would suggest, a royal pain in Humboldt’s neck.
With 4:15 left in the fourth quarter, the Wildcats finally took the lead 47-46, and then scored again on their next possession down the court.
But a key three-pointer from Humboldt senior Rhett Smith, and a pair of important steals perpetrated by the Cubs in the final two minutes, meant the difference, and the visiting Humboldt team returned home still undefeated.
They play Neodesha at home on Friday.
The Humboldt Lady Cubs burnished their unbeaten record Tuesday night by defeating the hometown Yates Center Wildcats by nearly 60 points. Final score: 71-14.
The Cubs’ methodical offense dismantled the Wildcats in the early minutes, establishing a 15-0 run to start the game.
Humboldt benefited hugely from having two more McCalls than the other team. Sisters Makaylah and Aricah McCall deposited a combined 30 points and forced a number of Wildcat turnovers on the opposite end.
“Those girls are both good, and they sort of balance each other out,” said Cubs head coach Aubrey Jones. “Makaylah makes some great passes and Aricah really looks to drive. They both crash the boards hard. They’re both solid players. It’s nice to have two of them.”
Junior Annalise Whitcomb was the night’s second leading scorer with 16 (behind Aricah’s 17).
Any danger of complacency for the Lady Cubs, however, is removed by the exacting standards applied by their head coach. “They know better than that,” laughed Jones, who found in her team’s lopsided win still more room for improvement. “Our free throws tonight just weren’t up to par. We were 10 of 24, and that’s just not going to cut it. I don’t care that we won by darn near 60; I want to make sure that we’re taking care of the ball and doing what we’re supposed to be doing.”
Jones smiled. “But, yeah — we had a good night tonight.”
