Iola High?s Mustangs ran into some trouble from Long distance Thursday.
Santa Fe Trail sharpshooter John Long drilled seven 3-pointers as the visiting Chargers took control early of a 62-48 decision.
Six of Long?s treys came in a 25-point first half.
?We had a plan in place, but we didn?t execute it very well early on,? Mustang head coach Luke Bycroft said. ?We were supposed to do something a little different than that. I won?t say what. We did a better job of guarding him the way I wanted us to guard him in the second half.?
Iola started out on a better foot Friday in its regular season finale against Wellsville, but the Eagles caught fire in the second half, turning a one-point margin into a 77-62 victory.
The losses drop Iola?s final regular season mark to 9-11. The Mustangs will travel to Independence Wednesday to open the Class 4A substate playoffs.
?We?ll take the weekend and catch our breath,? Bycroft said. ?Then we?ll have good practices on Monday and Tuesday, and get after it.?
THURSDAY
Long hit a trio of 3-pointers in the first quarter as the Chargers zipped to a 15-5 lead.
Then, after the Mustangs gathered themselves to keep pace through much of the second quarter, Long erupted again to end the half.
He connected three times as Santa Fe Trail ended the second quarter on a 12-4 run to lead 40-23 at intermission.
?There were a lot of things we could do better,? Bycroft said.
That said, the Mustangs made things interesting in the third and fourth quarters, courtesy of a frenetic defense focused on shadowing Long and clogging the passing lanes.
Kane Rogers connected twice from inside, and reserve Landon Carson?s layup helped close the gap to 44-36 late in the period.
Santa Fe Trail responded with five straight points, including Long?s seventh and final 3-pointer, to re-establish a 13-point lead at the break.
Iola drew no closer than 11 down the stretch.
Still, Bycroft was encouraged by Iola?s response.
?We really dug in, he said. ?The effort and the heart, to fight and claw and scratch your way back into it against a team that was shooting like that was outstanding. There?s a lot of potential for us moving forward.?
