EAST GRAND FORKS USES 26-3 RUN TO BEAT PIRATE BOYS BASKETBALL

FIRST HALF –
East Grand Forks scored the first point of the game on a Clyde Anderson free throw before Crookston responded with four straight points.  Isaac Thomforde made a three-pointer, and Tanner Giese added a free throw for a 4-1 lead almost four minutes into the game.  The teams would battle back and forth with ties at 4, 7, 11, and 13 at the halfway point of the half.  Hunter Nicholas, who picked up two fouls in the first two minutes of the game, checked back into the game and scored a quick seven points.  The seventh point for Nicholas was a free throw, and that was followed by a Giese basket for a 16-13 lead with 8:43 left in the game.
East Grand Forks responded with an 8-0 run with four points from Carson McDonald for a 21-16 lead.  Crookston stopped the run with a Gavin Winger three-pointer, only to have the Green Wave’s McDonald respond with five straight points for a 26-19 lead.  The Pirates Everett responded with a three-pointer only to have East Grand Forks end the half on a 10-2 run for a 35-24 lead.

SECOND HALF –
East Grand Forks started the second half on a 16-1 run while turning Pirate turnovers into easy points and had a 52-25 lead four minutes into the half.  The lone Pirate point in the run came on a Ryan Abeld free throw.  The total run for East Grand Forks from the end of the first half to the start of the second half was a 26-3 run.
Crookston finally stopped the run with a Nicholas basket, and after a Green Wave basket, Tanner Giese scored six straight points, and Caden Boike added a three-pointer for a 9-0 run to get within a 54-36 deficit halfway through the half.  Crookston trailed 60-42 when Reggie Winjum made a three-pointer, and after a Green Wave basket, Winjum added another three to get the Pirates within a 63-48 deficit. Crookston couldn’t keep the run going, and East Grand Forks was able to hold off the Pirates the rest of the way for a 75-59 victory.

Crookston drops to 7-13 on the year and will host Thief River Falls on Friday.  East Grand Forks improves to 8-10 on the year.

FOR COACH GREG GARMEN’S POST-GAME COMMENTS, CLICK BELOW.

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