On Tuesday, November 29, the boys basketball team traveled to Pella to take on the number one team in 2A, the Pella Christian Eagles. Last year the game came down to the wire, when the Tigers, the underdogs, fell 59-60.

This year, the Tigers were hoping the outcome would be a little different. The Tigers were returning the majority of their key players including Tajen Ross, Matthew Larson and Payton Conrad.

During the first quarter, both teams came out hot. Throughout the game, it looked as if the game plan for the Tigers was to shut down Levi Jungling, one of the best guards in the state. The Tigers put Sam McCartney on Jungling the whole game to shut him down.

For the most part, Jungling wasn’t that big of a factor. What really hurt the Tigers was down low in the post. The Tigers had nobody to match up against  #41 Kenden Veenstra and #13 Jackson Flagel. They continued to dominate the game down low for the Eagles.

What really helped and overall kept the Tigers in the game was throughout the second quarter Tajen Ross took over the game for the Tigers. Ross really put pressure on the defense, driving to the basket. He may not score every time but when he finds Payton Conrad or Matthew Larson outside the arch it really helps them shoot their way back into the game.

Early in the second quarter, the Tigers got into the bonus and were making most of their free throws. At halftime, the Tigers were down 39 to 31. The trend continued in the second half, where the Tigers couldn’t defend the post, which left the Eagles with open three looks.

The Tigers fell 75-68. If a few of the close calls went the other way, the game could have been very different.

Third-year starter Matthew Larson said, “I think we played really good throughout the game, we just need to execute more on offense and rotate better on defense.”  

The team still needs to plan for how they’ll defend the post in future games.

Larson said, “We just need to toughen up and play bigger. If we help back side it shouldn’t be a problem.”

The Tigers are at home for their second game on Friday against a tough one-win Ballard Bomber team.