By John RittenhouseThe Hills-Beaver Creek boys’ basketball team snapped a two-game losing skid during the third-place game of the Albert Lea Tournament Saturday.Less than 24 hours after dropping their second consecutive decision, the Patriots ended the slide by besting Faribault Bethlehem Academy 40-29 in a game for third and fourth place.H-BC got off to a strong start by outscoring the Cardinals 17-9 in the first quarter and went on to win by 11 after fighting off some middle-quarter challenges by FBA.FBA outscored the Patriots 7-4 in the second period to slice H-BC’s lead down to five points (21-16) at the intermission before coming within four points (29-25) of the Patriots in the third quarter.H-BC, however, outscored the Cardinals 11-4 in the final eight minutes of play to win the game by 11 points.Trey Van Wyhe, one of three Patriots to score nine points in the game, was selected to the all-tournament team at game’s end.Tyler Bush scored nine points and led the Patriots with 12 rebounds and seven assists.Zach Wysong added nine points to the cause, while Kale Wiertzema chipped in 10 rebounds and two blocked shots.The 6-2 Patriots play a road game against Russell-Tyler-Ruthton Tuesday.Box scoreBush 2 0 5-6 9, Wysong 3 1 0-0 9, Jackson 0 0 0-0 0, Broesder 1 0 1-2 3, Wiertzema 2 1 0-0 7, Van Wyhe 4 0 1-2 9, Spykerboer 0 0 0-0 0, LeBoutillier 0 0 3-4 3.Team statisticsH-BC: 14 of 34 field goals (41 percent), 10 of 14 free throws (71 percent), 35 rebounds, 14 turnovers.FBA: 11 of 43 field goals (26 percent), four of five free throws (80 percent), 34 rebounds, 19 turnovers.
