Lions pick up valuable learning experiences

There was good news and bad news in a pair of Clear Lake outings against some of the conference’s best teams last week.  The Lions (1-2)dropped their matches with Iowa Falls-Alden and Humboldt, but Coach Kevin Kahler said both games were valuable learning experiences which will set the Lions up for success the next time they play.

IF-A 76, CL 58
    The Lions have fourth ranked (3A) Iowa Fall-Alden a battle in a hard-fought game in Clear Lake Tuesday, Dec. 6.  The Cadets hit some key three-pointers at critical points to earn a 76-58 victory.
    “It was a good opportunity for us to see how we matched up with the best team in the conference.  We did some good things, but we obviously have some things to work on,” said Clear Lake Coach Kevin Kahler.  “Iowa Falls shot the ball extremely well and really executed their offense.  I thought we did a decent job defensively; we contested most of their shots, but they have a lot of weapons to cover up.  We’ll chalk this one up as a learning opportunity and hopefully use it to make ourselves better.”
    The Cadets hit a couple to treys at the end of the first half to give themselves a comfortable 35-20 lead at the break, then went on a run early in the third quarter to put the game out of reach.  IF-A connected on nine of 14 three-point shot attempts in the game.
    “The kids played hard though, and that’s all that I ask,” said Kahler.
    The Lions were led in scoring by Ozzie Adams with 14 points.  Jack Abbas and Spencer Davidson had 11 and 10 points respectively.  Pete Swenson added five points, while Gavin Sheakley, Tanner Tusha, Bryson Hamilton and Chase Crosby had four points apiece. Luke Schiller added two.

Humboldt 63, CL 60
    Friday night the Lions were on the road against another top NCC team.  While not in the rankings yet, Humboldt has been receiving votes in Class 3A rankings.  They added another win to their record, defeating the Lions, 63-30.
    “Humboldt is always a tough place to play for us.  This was our first road game of the year for, so I didn’t know how we’d respond, but we had a good first half and were right where we needed to be at halftime.  Defensively, I thought we played good enough to win,” said Coach Kahler.  “Nothing against Humboldt, but I thought we beat ourselves tonight.”
    Humboldt held a slim 25-24 halftime advantage.    Free throws were a big part of the game, as the Wildcats were 17/31 from the line and the Lions were 14/16.
    Senior Ozzie Adams again led the team in scoring with 27.  He was 10/19 from the field and 5/8 from behind the - Read More Via e-Edition