The Cowboys took a tough 91-58 loss at Iowa Falls-Alden last Tuesday. Coady Olson netted 19 points to lead the team, followed by Mateo Martinez with 12 and Connor State with 10 counters. Jaxon Carpenter finished with six points, Christian Gaytan four points, Tyson Berning three points and both Aiden Harrington and Kaden Bricker two points apiece.
Olson and State grabbed six rebounds each, Carpenter had four assists and Martinez and Harrington two steals each.
“We pure and simple did not play well,” stated head coach Brandon Lantzky. “Defensively, we need to improve our on-ball defense. We were not able to contain their dribble drive and it allowed shooters to get open. Credit the Cadets, they shot the ball exceptionally well.”
They hosted Algona on Thursday in a make-up game and lost 62-48. State finished with 14 and Gaytan 10 to top the list. Martinez and Olson nearly joined them in doubles at nine points each. Carpenter scored four points and Cael Chase two points. Harington and State got their mitts on five rebounds apiece, with Gaytan dishing out four assists and swiping three steals. State had two blocked shots.
“This is one of the best teams in the conference, and I think they are one of the best teams in 3A,” said the coach. “We played a close game with them. The execution was better than in the previous game. The score looks a little more lopsided due to fouling at the end of the game. They were able to make free throws to pull out the win.”
They took a 72-60 Winterfest loss on Friday versus Humboldt. State drained the rims for 18 points, with Olson netting 12 points and both Martinez and Carpenter 11 points apiece. Chase added two points.
Gaytan, Carpenter and State all had five rebounds each. Carpenter made 12 assists in unselfish play, with Martinez making three steals.
“Another case of an opponents hot shooting night,” said Lantzky. “They did a good job of hitting shots in the first half. We got down early, but I was proud that our guys did not quit. We were able to get it back to within five points in the fourth quarter, but ran out of time to complete the comeback.”
The following games were not included in last week’s Monitor due to an early deadline, and so are being summarized to include in this issue.
On Monday, January 20, they defeated Eagle Grove 76-38 in a home game. The score was 45-26 Cowboys at halftime. Martinez scored 23 points, Gaytan 16 points and Olson 11 points. State led in rebounds with nine, Martinez, Carpenter and State all had four assists each and Martinez made four steals. State had two blocked shots.
On Tuesday, January 21, they lost to Clear Lake 73-48 in a home game. Martinez led in scoring at 12 points, followed by Gaytan and State with 10 points each. Gaytan had five rebounds, both Olson and Carpenter three assists each and Gaytan two steals.
On Friday, January 24, they lost 77-61 at Hampton-Dumont/CAL. Martinez led in scoring with 18 points, followed by Olson and Carpenter with 10 points each. Gaytan had six rebounds, State three assists and State four steals.
