Mustangs hang on to defeat Anderson County 70-64

Iola High’s Mustangs jumped out to an early lead against Anderson County Tuesday night, but had to hold off a Bulldog comeback to win 70-61.
“We did our share of mistakes and kind of let them back in the game,” coach Bill Peeper said. “It got a whole lot closer than it needed to be. To their credit, they never quit and played hard.”
Iola bested the Bulldogs 61-54 in Anderson County’s own tournament earlier this season.
The Mustangs jumped out in front of the Bulldogs 10-2 on Travis Hermstein’s 3-pointer with 4:15 left in the first quarter. Adam Peterson kept the Mustangs galloping ahead with a putback to give Iola a 14-7 lead with 2:45 left.
Iola had a 6-0 run cemented by Alex Bauer’s putback to take an 11-point advantage at 21-10 with 15 seconds left in the quarter. However, Anderson County’s Nick Levy made two free throws with 4.1 seconds left.
It seemed as if the Mustangs would roll to victory with their quick start in the second quarter. Ben Cooper converted on a drive to the basket, Kaden Macha made two free throws and Kohl Endicott scored on a putback to give Iola a 27-12 lead — its largest of the game — with 5:46 left in the half.
Anderson County answered back with their own seven point run, highlighted by a Jake Rundle 3-pointer. By the end of the half, Iola’s lead was down to seven points at 34-27.
The Bulldogs won the third quarter 19-15, edging closer to the lead. Macha hit a turnaround basket to give Iola a 40-35 advantage with 5:35 left in the third. Anderson’s Rundle then answered with a lay-in, which Cooper countered with a fullcourt drive to keep Iola ahead 42-37 with 4:40 left in the third.
The Bulldogs tied the game at 46-46 on a Rundle layup with 55 seconds left. The Mustangs escaped to the fourth quarter with a 48-46 lead because Cooper hit two free throws. Cooper had a strong game, scoring a team-high 19 points.
“Honestly, to their credit, they forced us into a lot of mistakes,” Peeper said. “They’re aggressive. They know what they’re doing and they don’t quit.”
With the score 60-56 in favor of Iola with 4:20 to go, the Mustangs went on a 8-0 run to take control of the game. Anderson County didn’t score fast enough in the final minutes, thanks to a good finish by the Iola defense and lousy clock management. Despite the 48 total fouls called in the game, Iola only took four free throws in the final minute and a half.
The Mustangs won 70-64.
“It’s hard to complain about a win, but we definitely have to keep getting better,” Peeper said. “There are so many facets of the game we have to improve on. Just the mental mistakes we made down the stretch put us out of our element.”
The Mustangs (3-4) play Osawatomie on Friday at 8 o’clock.

THE JUNIOR VARSITY Mustangs won 63-41 earlier on Tuesday against Anderson County.
Mason Ingle led the Mustangs with 14 points, while Chase Regehr followed with 14 points. Braden Plumlee scored eight points and Brice Aiello scored six points. Joey Zimmerman, Isaiah Fawson and Ethan Holloway each scored five points.  Zane Beasley and Sagar Patel each scored two points.

THE FRESHMEN had an impressive 61-8 win over Anderson County. Ethan Holloway led the team with 14 points, while Matt Komma scored 10 points. Ethan Sigg, Nick Vaughn and Ethan Tavarez each scored eight points. Isaac Vink scored six points, while Zach Cokely followed with four. Caden Knavel scored a basket and Cale Barnhart made a free throw.

Iola (21-13-14-22—70) (3PT/FG-FT-F-TP): Cooper 1/5-6-3-19, Endicott 4-0-4-8, Taylor 2-4-4-8, Aiello 1-0-1-2, Hermstein 1/0-0-2-3, Walden 1-0-4-2, Bauer 1-1-1-3, Macha 5-7-3-17, Peterson 4-0-4-8
Anderson County (12-15-19-18—64) (3PT/FG-FT-F-TP): Skiles 0-0-2-0, Johnston 0/3-0-3-3, Ratliff 2/2-3-3-10, Rundle 2/7-7-3-27, Levy 1-3-2-5, Hermreck 4-0-3-8, Phelps 0-0-2-0, Rockers 0-1-0-1, Nelson 2-3-4-7