By John Rittenhouse
Ellsworth’s perfect start to the boys’ basketball season came to an end with a loss to Mitchell Christian in the championship game of the Mitchell (S.D.) Holiday Tournament Saturday.
After posting 16- and 31-point wins over Woonsocket and White Lake Thursday and Friday respectively, the Panthers came up four points short in the title tilt against Mitchell Christian.
The loss snapped a nine-game winning streak the Panthers put together to start the season, but EHS coach Ken Kvaale didn’t seem bothered by losing a game.
"Hopefully, it will serve as a good lesson for the kids, and we can build it into something positive," he said.
The 9-1 Panthers host Russell-Tyler-Ruthton tonight and Edgerton Tuesday. Ellsworth plays in Hills Friday.
MC 71, Ellsworth 67
The Panthers came up on the short end of a score for the first time this season when Mitchell Christian nipped them by four points in Saturday’s championship game.
MC opened an eight-point halftime lead and maintained it at the end of the third quarter.
The Panthers made a bid to catch MC when Dylan Kvaale drained a three point shot to make it a 69-67 game with 20 seconds remaining, but MC scored the final two points while knocking the Panthers from the unbeaten ranks.
"We had a little trouble defensively in this game," said coach Kvaale. "Our field goal percentage was good, but we were not getting the defensive stops we needed. MC deserves some of the credit for that. They had a nice inside-outside game."
MC led 24-21 after eight minutes of play before outscoring EHS 19-14 in the second quarter to sport a 43-35 halftime lead.
The score was 56-48 at the end of the third quarter before the Panthers closed the gap to four points with a 19-15 scoring edge in the fourth quarter.
Dylan Kvaale, who scored eight points in the fourth quarter, netted 21 counters in the game. Curt Schilling had a triple-double with 21 points, 15 rebounds and 10 assists.
Both Kvaale and Schilling were named to the all-tournament team.
Box score
Schilling 8 0 5-6 21, Jenniges 2 0 1-1 5, Janssen 0 1 0-0 3, Kvaale 4 3 4-4 21, Sieff 1 1 0-0 5, Deutsch 2 0 2-2 6, Brommer 0 2 0-0 6.
Team statistics
Ellsworth: 50 percent field goals (totals were not available), 12 of 13 free throws (92 percent), 33 rebounds, 12 turnovers.
Ellsworth 69, WL 38
The Panthers earned a berth in Saturday’s championship game by destroying White Lake by 31 points in Friday’s semifinals.
Ellsworth controlled play from the beginning of the game to the end by outscoring WL in every quarter.
"We played a pretty good game," said coach Kvaale. "Our defense was good, and we shot the ball well."
The Panthers led 15-9 after eight minutes of play before increasing the difference to 13 points (30-17) with a 15-8 scoring cushion in the second quarter.
A 13-6 scoring advantage in the third quarter gave the Panthers a 20-point lead (43-23) heading into the final stanza when they went on a 26-15 scoring spree to win the game by 31 points.
Ellsworth made 15 of 22 field goals (68 percent) in the second half. Blake Brommer scored 10 of his team-high 19 points in the second half. Schilling added eight of his 16 points.
Schilling led EHS with 14 rebounds. Kvaale and Schilling passed for nine and eight assists respectively. Brommer and Travis Jenniges charged three steals each.
Box score
Schilling 7 0 2-2 16, Jenniges 2 0 0-0 4, Janssen 0 1 0-0 3, Kvaale 4 0 0-1 8, Sieff 2 1 1-2 8, Deutsch 4 0 1-2 9, Brommer 2 4 3-3 19, Farrell 0 0 2-2 2.
Team statistics
Ellsworth: 27 of 49 field goals (55 percent), nine of 12 free throws (75 percent), 33 rebounds, 15 turnovers.
Ellsworth 84,
Woonsocket 68
The Panthers opened the tournament by securing a 16-point win over Woonsocket Thursday.
After the teams battled to a draw at 18 in the first quarter, EHS started to assert itself and went on to outscore Woonsocket in all three of the remaining periods.
The Panthers outscored Woonsocket 27-20 in the second period to gain a 45-38 halftime lead.
EHS increased its lead to 11 points (62-51) with a 17-13 scoring edge in the third quarter before outscoring Woonsocket 22-17 in the fourth quarter to prevail by 16.
"Woonsocket probably was the third best team in the tournament," said coach Kvaale. "Our defense was the key in this game. We hit our first two shots of the third quarter, our defense was working, and the rest of game was history."
Brant Deutsch had a double-double for EHS with 20 points and 11 rebounds. Deutsch also distributed seven assists.
Schilling scored 20 points, pulled down eight rebounds and passed for eight assists. Brommer had 11 points, seven assists, six rebounds and four steals, while Jenniges added 13 points and four recoveries.
Dylan Kvaale scored 11 of his 14 points to help the Panthers put the game away in the second half.
Box score
Schilling 6 1 5-8 20, Jenniges 6 0 1-2 13, Janssen 1 1 0-0 5, Kvaale 3 2 2-2 14, Sieff 0 0 1-2 1, Deutsch 7 1 3-5 20, Brommer 1 3 0-0 11.
Team statistics
Ellsworth: 31 of 59 field goals (53 percent), 12 of 21 free throws (57 percent), 37 rebounds, 12 turnovers.