Last week the Lennox High School boys’ basketball team earned back-to-back wins, defeating Tri-Valley 64-57 on Feb. 20 and Dell Rapids, 49-40 on Feb. 21.
Against Tri-Valley, Lennox used a huge third quarter in which they outscored Tri-Valley 23-11. The Mustangs got hot from the three point line, but Lennox managed to pull out the win.
“The boys found a way to fight for a win when we weren’t as good as we could be on the offensive or defensive ends of the court. We have been emphasizing to continue to be better free throws shooters and that allowed us to put enough points on the board to win the basketball game,” said LHS head coach Jacob Hinker. “Tri-Valley played a great basketball game and we have to give them credit for how they battled against us.”
Against Tri-Valley, Tate Gerdes led the way with 27 points, hitting two from downtown and all seven attempts at the foul line. Gerdes also grabbed two rebounds, had three assists and two steals.
Boston Katzer was also in double figures for the Orioles, scoring 11 points. Katzer hit two from downtown and recorded a double-double, pulling down 11 rebounds to go with his 11 points. He also had four assists and two steals.
Teegan Musser finished with nine points, ten rebounds, and one assist. Aiden Hanssen scored seven points, grabbed four rebounds, had four assists, and one steal. Layton Smith added six points, grabbed two rebounds, had two assists, and two steals. Drake Mikkelsen finished with four points and two rebounds.
On Friday, the Orioles hosted Dells and had three players in double figures to get the win.
“This game had a playoff-type feel to it in terms of physicality and atmosphere. The boys embraced the challenge and showed that they could be the tougher team when shots weren’t falling,” said Hinker. “We have continued to preach that if we continue to have energy and effort on the defensive end, we will always be tough to beat, regardless of what happens on the offensive end. The boys showed that tonight.”
Leading Lennox was Smith who finished with 12 points, going four of ten from the field and hitting all four at the foul line. Smith recorded a double-double, pulling down ten rebounds to go with 12 points. He also had two assists.
Hanssen and Musser both scored ten points for Lennox. Hanssen hit two three pointers in the game and grabbed one rebound and had one assist. Musser went four of seven from the field and grabbed five rebounds.
Gerdes finished with nine points, nine rebounds, two assists and one steal. Katzer had eight points, six rebounds, five assists and three steals.
The Orioles were scheduled to travel to Beresford on Tuesday, Feb. 25. They will be on the road on Friday, Feb. 28 when they take on Dakota Valley in their final regular season game.