×

Mustangs mount a comeback

Fourth-quarter rally leads to East Marshall win over Belle Plaine

T-R PHOTO BY ROSS THEDE - East Marshall junior center Drew Runner (50) scores a layup and is fouled by Belle Plaine’s Ben DeMeulenaere during the fourth quarter of Monday’s non-conference basketball game in Le Grand. Runner scored a game-high 19 points in the Mustangs’ 57-50 victory.

LE GRAND — The deficit was 42-25 with three minutes left in the third quarter. East Marshall was on the ropes — and with each passing Belle Plaine basket, the path to victory got more and more narrow. Trailing 43-29 after three quarters, the Mustangs had to play near-perfect basketball to stand a chance.

That’s exactly what they did.

A 28-7 fourth-quarter performance gave the Mustangs a 57-50 win over the Belle Plaine Plainsmen Monday night in non-conference action.

The Plainsmen came into Monday’s game with a 10-2 record in Class 1A and controlled much of the first-half action. East Marshall was pressing and had its fair share of turnovers, allowing Belle Plaine to get into transition before the Mustangs could get their 2-3 zone set up. For the most part, the Mustangs held up on defense, but a lack of scoring put them behind 28-19 at halftime.

The second half started out with a similar pattern to the first, with the Mustangs struggling to finish opportunities on the offensive end of the floor. Belle Plaine grew in confidence, and two-straight 3-pointers from junior Noah Bachelder put the Plainsmen up by double-digits. With the zone defense failing to stop Belle Plaine’s shooters, coach Adam Bauder changed up the Mustangs’ scheme and went with a pressure man defense.

T-R PHOTO BY ROSS THEDE - East Marshall junior Ethan Espenscheid, top, tries to wrestle the ball away from Belle Plaine’s Elias Ehlen during a scramble in the second quarter of Monday’s game in Le Grand.

“We got some turnovers that we actually capitalized on in our offensive end,” Bauder said. “Then you could kind of feel the thing shift a little bit.”

The change worked, and after trimming the deficit to 14 at the end of the third quarter the Mustangs began to change the momentum of the game. The Plainsmen hit seven 3-pointers: none came in the fourth quarter. East Marshall created turnovers and turned them into points, but the deficit was still 47-39 with less than five minutes to play.

The Mustangs would get within eight, then turn the ball over or miss shots and let Belle Plaine regain control. But in the fourth quarter junior center Drew Runner crashed the offensive glass and provided the Mustangs with extra opportunities to get back in the game. This time, Runner and freshman guard Bo Lee converted their chances.

“Coach told us we had to play the best defense of our lives,” Runner said. “I feel we did that.”

Runner finished with a game-high 19 points. Bauder said he’s been getting on Runner to be aggressive on the glass for years and was happy to see him be a force when it mattered.

T-R PHOTO BY ROSS THEDE - Mustang freshman Bo Lee, left, drives past Lance Van Nevel for a shot attempt in the second half.

Lee hit a 3-pointer with 4:23 left to put the score at 47-42 Belle Plaine. The Plainsmen went to a 1-3-1 zone to keep the Mustangs from driving the lane — but it left corner threes open, something Bauder sets up with a 2-1-2 set.

Then, junior Logan Bowie turned a steal into an easy layup — and the deficit was only three. After trading baskets, Runner grabbed an offensive rebound and finished an and-one with 2:15 to play.

The score was 49-49.

After forcing a stop on the defensive end, junior guard Ethan Espenscheid got open on the left wing and let a 3-pointer fly. When the ball rippled the net, the East Marshall home crowd let out a big roar.

The Mustangs led 52-49 with 93 seconds left in the game and they wouldn’t lose the lead, sinking free throws in the final minute to pull away and leave the Plainsmen in shock. Free throws played a key role down the stretch, as the Mustangs went 13-for-22 from the line and Belle Plaine went 3-for-12.

T-R PHOTO BY ROSS THEDE

Monday’s win moves the Mustangs to 4-7 on the year — it’s their third win in four games. Bauder said the performance of Lee, in particular, could be a big boost moving forward.

“We can call this a little bit of a coming-out party, I hope, for [Lee],” Bauder said. “He’s been frustrated. The transition from eighth grade to freshman to varsity basketball is huge, it can’t be understated.

“Give the kid credit, he works as hard or harder than anyone. Basketball is that kid’s life and he gets after it.”

East Marshall 57, Belle Plaine 50

At Le Grand

BELLE PLAINE (10-3) — Luke DeMeulenaere 1 0-0 2, Trevin Straight 1 1-4 3, Jackson Tegeler 5 0-0 13, Lance Van Nevel 2 1-3 5, Ben DeMeulenaere 4 1-2 9, Jaxon Kressley 3 0-3 6, Noah Bachelder 4 0-0 12, Eli Ehlen 0 0-0 0. TOTALS 20 3-12 50.

EAST MARSHALL (4-7) — Bo Lee 3 5-8 13, Ethan Espenscheid 4 0-1 10, Logan Bowie 4 1-4 9, Eric Ommen 2 0-0 4, Drew Runner 6 7-9 19, Tyler Finders 0 0-0 0, Korbin Seth 1 0-0 2, Junior Brown 0 0-0 0. TOTALS 20 13-22 57.

BELLE PLAINE 18 10 15 7 — 50

E. MARSHALL 12 7 10 28 — 57

3-Point Goals–BP 7 (Bachelder 4, Tegeler 3), EM 4 (Lee 2, Espenscheid 2). Total Fouls–BP 16, EM 13. Fouled Out–B. DeMeulenaere, Ommen.

Newsletter

Today's breaking news and more in your inbox

I'm interested in (please check all that apply)
Are you a paying subscriber to the newspaper? *
   

Starting at $4.38/week.

Subscribe Today