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Tigers hold off Bucs, 57-51

By Staff | Dec 11, 2011

Brandyn Olsen

Belle Plaine held off the visiting Blue Earth Area boys basketball team for a 57-51 non-conference victory Tuesday.

The Tigers had an answer for every attempt at a Buccaneer rally, outscoring BEA by three points in each half.

In the first 16 minutes of play, the Bucs battled the Tigers in a back and forth affair.

The two teams took turns leading the game, but Belle Plaine made timely baskets at the end of the half to secure a 26-23 lead.

Opening the second half, Belle Plaine went on a 21 to 7 run extending their lead to 47-30.

“We dug ourselves into too deep of a hole,” head coach Gary Holmseth says. “We committed too many turnovers that led directly into points.”

Combine the turnovers with a poor shooting performance to start the second half and BEA was faced with an uphill battle for the remainder of the game.

The Bucs refused to give in, however, and were able to claw their way back to within four points of the lead with 1:48 remaining in the game.

“Dallas Barslou fouled out shortly after we got within four and that hurt our chances of coming back,” Holmseth says.

BEA struggled from the free throw line making 3 of 11 attempts while Belle Plaine knocked down 14 of 22 shots from the line.

The Bucs were led by Brady Anderson who scored 15 points.

The senior connected on two 3-pointers to lead the Bucs from the perimeter.

Brandyn Olsen was the second leading scorer for the Bucs.

The 6-foot-2 junior led the BEA charge in the second half recording all 10 of his points in the frame.

Luke Monson rounded out the Bucs leading scorers with eight points.

“Luke did a nice job providing a spark off the bench,” Holmseth adds.

The Tigers limited last year’s leading scorer, Sam Lee to four points.

“Sam had a 6-foot-8 junior on him, who did a very nice job on the defensive end,” Holmseth comments.

Coach Holmseth says BEA took better shots and played harder in their second game of the year.

The loss drops the Bucs to 0-2 on the season.

BEA looked to enter the win column Saturday after the Register’s deadline when they traveled to Le Sueur-Henderson.

The Bucs will open South Central Conference play Thursday when they travel to Waseca to take on the Bluejays. The first of three games between the two schools will begin at 6 p.m.