STATE CENTER — The West Marshall boys’ basketball team made a second-half comeback that came up just short in a 53-48 loss to Roland-Story in Friday’s Heart of Iowa Conference clash.

Eli Van Hove scored a game-high 19 points to help the host Norsemen (5-1, 5-1) hold off West Marshall’s rally after halftime. The Trojans (4-3, 3-3) trailed 24-14 at the half but outscored Roland-Story 34-29 after the break, getting as close as four points along the way.

Evan Siegert scored a team-leading 15 points for West Marshall. Connor Kemmerer contributed 10 points, Teegun Edler had eight points, and Ryder Gile got seven points and a team-leading eight rebounds. Beckham DeSotel chipped in with four points and four assists, and Tyson Bunting also scored four points.

The Trojans play three road games next week starting Tuesday at Greene County.