Cyclones back in win column over Trojans
The HCHS Cyclones boys basketball team has returned to the win column after a tough 3-game stretch defeating Hawkeye Ten opponent, the Atlantic Trojans 59-44 at Wells Fargo Arena.
“It’s a fun place to play and it’s a good environment,” said Junior Dallas McDowell. “We started playing as a team. We struggled in some areas, but we were able to figure it out and get our defense together, score the ball, and it was a fun time.”
The first quarter was a see-saw battle with the first shot of the game coming from Junior Trojan Shelton Mualia, followed by a layup from Senior Cyclone Ben Leinen. McDowell made the final baskets of the quarter on free throws as the Cyclones and Trojans found themselves in a 16-16 game.
“We played man the whole first quarter,” said Cyclone Head Coach Mitch Osborn. “Their offense is pretty dang good and we went to a zone defense. Chad Swanson and Dean Mosher were calling a lot of the defense giving me suggestions.”
Junior Trojan Hudson McLaren opened the second quarter with a 3-point shot, but McDowell responded with a mid-range floater and layup to tie the game at 21, which was followed by a 3-pointer from Sophomore Kobe Klaassen to give the Cyclones a 24-21 lead.
McDowell continued to have a great first half making another two shots before halftime, including another two mid-range floaters giving his team a 28-23 lead.
“The first four minutes we really had to come out and get some cushion,” Osborn said. “We got up about 10 a couple of times. The two points right at the end of the third quarter were huge.”
In the third quarter, the Cyclone offense took command of the game starting with free throws from McDowell, a 3-pointer from Klaassen, and layups from Leinen and Jozef Reisz. McDowell gave his team an 8-point lead at the end of the quarter when he sank another mid-range floater, along with free throws to put the Cyclones up 45-37.
“When you play man, Jozef is a low guard and so is Dallas,” Osborn added. “They [Atlantic] did good to that 2-3 zone and then Kobe hit a 3-pointer in the corner. That was huge for us. We only hit two 3’s the whole game. We really wanted to attack and take the ball inside.”
Senior Trojan Kinnick Juhl made the first shot of the fourth quarter on a mid-range jump shot, but Klaassen answered back when he made a shot, and was fouled, went to the free throw line and made the free throw.
Following Klaassen’s basket, Reisz and McDowell continued to help out on the offensive end of the floor when Reisz made two layups, along with McDowell stealing the ball, driving to the basket, and making an easy layup.
The Cyclones had a few contributions from Freshman Kreed Boggess who made two free throws, along with a mid-range jump shot.
“Kreed has been doing junior varsity wrestling too, but tonight we didn’t have a freshman game, so I had him for four quarters,” Osborn said. “I used him a lot tonight. He’s been improving a lot in practice. He’s working harder and that’s what it takes.”
The Cyclones cruised to their seventh win of the season. They return home Thursday to face the 18-3 Treynor Cardinals, who have won 13 straight games. The Cardinals are led by Junior Alec Lovely averaging 19.6 points and four assists per game, along with Junior Corbin Then averaging 7.3 rebounds per game.
“We’ve just got to play hard because they’re a very good team,” McDowell said. “We’ve got to come out ready and get a win.”
