MHS boys edged by Brookings 52-51

The Kernels had their first glimpse of victory when sophomore Beau Brown knocked down a three-point basket with 12 seconds left in the fourth quarter, putting Mitchell up by one.

With 7 seconds left and after back-to-back timeouts, Brookings’ forward Braxton Carlson drove the lane, scored and lifted the Bobcats over the Kernels 52-51 as the clock ran out.

“He just got the ball, took it from the baseline and made the big shot,” Mitchell head coach Tom Young said.

The Bobcats had four players in double figures with Kaleb Vig and Zach Page leading the way with 12 points apiece.

The Kernels dropped to 0-3 on the season after the Eastern South Dakota Conference loss. After falling to Brandon Valley and Pierre by double figures, Mitchell’s inexperience continues to lessen in the eyes of the players.

“It was a one-possession game,” said Brown, who had a game-high 20 points. “That could be one turnover, one more shot or one offensive rebound. This just proves that we’re right with these teams in the ESD, and we can win these games.”

Brookings got out to an early lead and led by as many as seven in the first half with the help of Tyler Nagy, who scored three 3-pointers. The Kernels fought their way back with shots from behind the arc and a big defensive effort.

Mitchell took its first lead of the game with 2 seconds left in the first half as Cole Morgan was fouled, making his two free throws to give the Kernels a 25-23 lead going into the locker room. The foul was a result of a steal by Seth Cavanaugh.

With a slow start in the third quarter, the Kernels found themselves down by six points. But again Mitchell came back into the game by its defensive effort.

“When we were down late in the game, we could’ve given up but these kids didn’t,” Young said. “We’re forcing turnovers late in the game, giving us an opportunity to win.”

Despite the close game, Brookings outrebounded Mitchell 31-17.

“There’s a big difference in the way our team has played from game one to game three,” Young said. “We still have a lot of work to do, and we have to give ourselves more opportunities to shoot the ball.”

Mitchell made 8 of 25 three-point baskets in the game and shot 39 percent from the field. The Kernels were 7-for-8 at the free throw line.

Behind Brown, Cavanaugh recorded 10 points, Jared Schmidt had nine points, Morgan tallied eight and Josh Schmidt added four. Morgan led the Kernels with five rebounds.

The Bobcats were 48.8 percent from the field and a perfect 6-for-6 in free throws. Nagy and Carlson each had 11 points in the game and Nagy had a game-high eight rebounds.

The Kernels are back in action when they host a pair of games against Rapid City Central and Rapid City Stevens Friday and Saturday at the Corn Palace. Friday’s game is set for 7:30 p.m. and Saturday’s is scheduled for 1:45 p.m.

BROOKINGS 52

MITCHELL 51

Mitchell (0-3, 0-3 ESD)

Cole Morgan 2-5 3-4 8; Jared Schmidt 3-7 0-0 9; Seth Cavanaugh 4-14 0-0 10; Beau Brown 8-17 2-2 20; Josh Schmidt 1-2 0-1 2-2 4; Zach Moen 0-0 0-0 0; Neil Schlimgen 0-0 0-0 0; Evan Mastel 0-0 0-0 0; Kass Ischen 0-0 0-0 0

Brookings (2-1, 2-1 ESD)

Zach Kress 0-1 0-0 0; Braxton Carlson 4-6 0-0 11; Tyler Nagy 4-10 0-0 11; Kaleb Vig 6-8 0-0 12; Zach Page 4-7 4-4 12; Mikey Daniel 0-0 0-0 0; Konner Beste 1-8 2-2 4; Seth Moret 1-1 0-0 2

Halftime: M 25-23. 3-point goals: M 8-25 (Morgan 1, Schmidt 3, Cavanaugh 2, Brown 2), B 6-13 (Carlson 3, Nagy 3); Rebounds: M 17 (Morgan 5), B 31 (Nagy 8); Steals: M 12 (Cavanaugh 3, Brown 3), B 7 (Vig 3); Assists: M 7 (Brown 4), B 3 (Kress, Nagy, Vig); Turnovers M 7, B 13; Total fouls: M11, B 11. Technical fouls: None.

Subvarsity scores

JV: Mitchell 56-47. Ethan Jones had 19 points. Derek Miller and Jon Jamison each recorded 12 points. Neil Schlimgen and Jamison led the team in rebounds with eight apiece.

Sophomore: Brookings 46-24. Kanin Nelson led all players with 10 points. Tyler Houwman tallied six points and Tyler Larson had six rebounds.

Freshman A: Brookings 50-39. Jetli Heng had 23 points and Justin Syring scored 12.

Freshman B: Brookings 57-48.

Tags: sports, updates, kernels, mitchell, basketball