Iola High’s boys basketball team had its chance at revenge on Friday night when it faced off against Girard at home.
The Trojans knocked the Mustangs out of the sub-state tournament last season, and Iola’s returning players wanted to flip the script by handing Girard a loss to start a new season.
But by the end of the night, the Mustangs found themselves on the wrong end of a blowout, losing 67-36.
“We expected them to be really good and we expected us to have growing pains, and that’s exactly what happened,” coach Jay Applegate said. “I think we got flustered and a little intimidated by them.”
The Mustangs had to dig themselves out a hole early in the contest as their offense was unable to keep up with the Trojans’ fast- paced scoring attack. Iola didn’t score its first point until midway through the first quarter and didn’t sink its first bucket until there was just more than 3 minutes left in the opening period.
Although the Mustangs eventually got into a bit of a rhythm toward the end of the second quarter when they went on a 7-0 run, the Trojans had already created enough separation to maintain a comfortable lead.
Turnovers plagued Iola’s offense throughout the matchup, giving Girard momentum-swinging fast breaks time and again.
“We got to value every possession,” said Applegate, who is in his first year year with Iola.
“If we could score one point on every possession, then we’ll probably win a lot of games.”
Unfortunately for Iola, only a few players were able to convert successfully on the offensive end of the floor.
Ethan Holloway finished the night with 8 points and Ben Cooper recorded 7 of his own.
No Mustangs player had a double-digit scoring performance against the Trojans’ stout defense.
As a team, Iola shot 12-of-39 from the floor, including just 1-of-12 from three-point range.
Despite the 31-point loss to kick off the new season, Applegate insisted they have time to right the ship.
“We learned some things,” Applegate said. “And we’re better because we played tonight.”
Mustangs start season 0-1
