Mitchell Christian had 31 points from standout center from Majok Kur but couldn't stop a second half surge from Ethan, who defeated the Golden Eagles 59-47 in a District 8B first round boys basketball playoff game Monday night at the Corn Palace in Mitchell.
Ethan's Camden Myers had 20 points and nine rebounds for the Rustlers, leading four Ethan players in double figures. Rylee Riggs had 14 points, Abiah Plastow added 12 points and Brady Hawkins tossed in 10 points for the fourth-seeded Rustlers. Derek Storm had five assists.
Both teams shot the ball well in the first half and the Golden Eagles used a 7-0 run to tie matters at 17-all midway through the second quarter. The game was even at 26-26 at halftime before Ethan scored 17 points in the third quarter for a five-point advantage to take to the fourth quarter.
Kur, a senior, added seven rebounds and four assists. Ethan Cooper had seven points and Alec Nelson had six points and three rebounds for MCS.
"I thought we played well defensively," said MCS coach Dennis Martin. "Kur was huge in the post. But hats off to Ethan for a great night of shooting the ball. Their run at the end of the third quarter and Myers' long 3-pointer really gave them the momentum."
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The Rustlers made 21-of-44 shots in the game and were 10-of-18 at the free throw line. The Golden Eagles were 27-of-59 shooting in the game and made 3-of-4 free throws. Ethan committed seven turnovers, while MCS had 11 turnovers. The Rustlers held a 28-16 advantage in rebounding.
Ethan (13-8) returns to the Corn Palace today to meet top-seeded Canistota at 6:30 p.m. Mitchell Christian ends its season at 8-13.
Mitchell Christian
Riley O'Neill 1 0-0 3 Zach Bosworth 0 0-0 0 Alec Nelson 3 0-0 6 Majok Kur 13 3-4 31 Ethan Cooper 3 0-0 7 Christian Cooper 0 0-0 0 Ty Vander Pol 0 0-0 0 TOTALS 20 3-4 47
Ethan
Abiah Plastow 4 3-4 12 Rylee Riggs 6 2-3 14 Brady Hawkins 3 2-3 10 Derek Storm 1 0-0 3 Camden Myers 7 3-8 20 Jacob Spier 0 0-0 0 TOTALS 21 10-18 59
MCS 12 26 38 47
Ethan 17 26 43 59
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3-point goals: MCS 4 (Kur 2, E. Cooper 1, O'Neill 1), Ethan 7 (Myers 3, Hawkins 2, Storm 1, Plastow 1); Rebounds: MCS 16 (Kur 7), Ethan 28 (Myers 9); Assists: MCS 4 (Kur 4), Ethan 13 (Storm 5); Total fouls: MCS 17, Ethan 9; Fouled out: None; Turnovers: MCS 11, Ethan 7
