Mustangs drop opener to Trojans

OSAWATOMIE —  Iola High’s Mustangs were competitive in the first quarter of Friday’s season opener against host Osawatomie High’s Trojans.
They were down 6-2 and came back to take a 7-6 lead. They had the basketball working on a set play for the final shot of the period and a lead again.
Iola didn’t get the shot. The Mustangs didn’t take advantage of early opportunities to score in the second quarter. They found themselves down 26-19 at halftime.
“We lost our mental edge we had in the first quarter. We didn’t take care of the basketball in the second half which limited our shot opportunities,” said first-year head coach Bill Peeper after the Mustangs lost 58-28.
Osawatomie went on an eight-point run to open the third quarter. Iola never got back in a scoring mode. The Mustangs had just two points in the period.
“We  played pretty well for the first quarter and a half. We made good decisions, got good looks close to the basket. We limited our mistakes and handled the ball,” Peeper said.
“That deteriorated as the game progressed. Our mistakes piled up. We turned the ball over in the mid 20s and that’s not going to win many games.”
The Mustangs scored nine points in the second half. Peeper said they struggled to find good shots.
Clint Heffern, who hit a three-pointer to give Iola its only lead of the night, finished with eight points. Braden Larson had eight points and seven rebounds.
Seth Jones led the Trojans with 18 points. Spencer Booe added 13 points.
Iola (0-1) goes to the Anderson County High preseason tournament next week. The Mustangs play Louisburg Tuesday and Burlington Thursday in pool play. The tournament concludes Friday.
“We just have to get tougher mentally. Finishing shots and taking care of the basketball areas we have to better in,” Peeper said.
Osawatomie won the junior varsity game 43-23. Levi Ashmore led Iola with eight points.
In the freshman game, Iola rolled to a 44-21 win. Trent Latta fired in 11 points followed by 10 apiece from Adam Kauth and Tyler Powelson.
Iola (14-5-2-7—28) (FG/3-pt): Heffern 0/2-2-1-8, Larson 3-2-0-8, C. Kauth 2-0-1-4, Apt 1-2-1-4, Sigg 1-0-1-2, Conner 1-0-0-2, Ashmore 0-0-2-0, J. Latta 0-0-1-0, Taylor 0-0-2-0, Coons 0-0-1-0. TOTALS: 8/2-6-10-28.
Osawatomie (15-11-15-17—58) (FG/3-pt): Jones 5/2-2-3-18, Booe 5-2-0-13, Oakes 2-0-3-4, Chisam 2-0-0-4, Vail 2-0-1-4, Sinclair 2-0-1-4, Criddle 0/1-0-1-3, Raymer 1-0-0-2, Rayl 1-0-0-2, Richardson 1-0-0-2. TOTALS: 21/3-5-9-58.