Boys split tournament games at Little Falls

The Staples-Motley boys basketball team finished in third place at the Little Falls tournament Dec. 29-30, falling to Little Falls 74-55 and then beating Upsala 77-46.

Against Little Falls, the Cardinals stayed close in the first half but were outscored by 12 points in the second half.

“This was a great shooting team, we knew to be competitive we were going to have to limit them from the arch and we did a fair job in the first half,” said Coach Micheal Poncelet.

The Cardinals were still within striking distince midway through the second half before Little Falls pulled away. “We are having trouble closing things out right now,” said Poncelet. “We are close and are competing with Pequot and Little Falls, but those teams were able to finish the job.” 

The Cardinals built a 13 point halftime lead against Upsala and increased it in the second half. “Our size gave them a lot of trouble and our defense clamped down in the second half,” said Poncelet.

Poncelet said they will be working on closing out games in the second half of the season. The team’s record is now 3-5.

Team results

Little Falls 74, Staples-Motley 55

Scoring: Gavin Smith 26, Trey Skeesick 11, Jack Fietek 7, Derek Kennedy 5, Mason Rychner 3, Isaiah Ross-Bahn 2, Max Giza 1, 

Staples-Motley 77, Upsala 46

Scoring: Smith 17, Skeesick 14, Fietek 9, Kennedy 8, Rychner 7, Ross-Bahn 7, Brayden Losh 5, Hunter Carlson 4, Jordan Carlson 4, Giza 2