The Stephen-Argyle Storm and Climax-Fisher Knights Boy’s Basketball teams met on Friday night for a Section 8A Tournament play in-game. Stephen-Argyle entered the game with a 6-16 record and was positioned as the #7 seed in the West Sub-Section, while Climax-Fisher came into the contest with a record of 3-21, and as the #10 seed in the West Sub-Section. The two teams met back in December with the Storm winning 88-66, and it was a similar result this time around, with the Storm scoring at an efficient pace in an 87-56 win ending the Knights season. “I’m proud of our guys tonight,” said Stephen-Argyle Head Coach Nevin Lubarski. “They competed well and showed a lot of heart throughout the game. It’s always fun to watch when we play like that.”
FIRST HALF –
Climax Fisher came out firing early, with Ethan Evitts scoring an early 8 points to help the Knights take an early 13-9 lead. “Credit to them for getting off to that start,” said Stephen-Argyle Head Coach Nevin Lubarski. “We knew they could score and they certainly were doing that early on and making it difficult for us.” The Storm would respond with buckets from Colten Pagnac, William McGlynn, and Aiden Anderson to tie the game at 15-15. From there the Storm would go on a 17-5 run to take a 32-20 lead with just under eight minutes remaining in the first half, during the run, the Storm were able to settle down offensively and played much better defense on the Knights shooters. “We did switch a few things up and I thought it really changed the game,” said Stephen-Argyle Head Coach Nevin Lubarski. “We really picked up the intensity and had a much better attitude the rest of the game.” Colten Pagnac continued his impressive first half for the Storm, and after an and-one, and another layup, the Storm had pulled ahead 37-22. The Knights wouldn’t go away quite yet and got buckets from Carter Helgeson and Ryan Morris to cut the deficit to 39-26 with three minutes to play until halftime. Stephen-Argyle reclaimed all the momentum heading into halftime, ending the first half on an 8-0 run, capped off with a four-point possession on an and-one from William McGlynn, and a layup from Aiden Anderson after McGlynn’s missed free throw. The Storm would take a 47-26 lead into the halftime break and were led by Colten Pagnac with 18 points, and 8 rebounds. The Knights were led by Ethan Evitts in the first half with 8 points.
SECOND HALF –
The second half was very similar to the first, with Stephen-Argyle getting a quick steal and a three from Colin McGregor. A few minutes later, two of the Knights starters fouled out and the game was never in question the rest of the way. Colten Pagnac and William McGlynn continued to score for Stephen-Argyle and help led the way and built the lead all the way up 33 points at one point at 69-36. “Those two guys were huge for us tonight,” said Stephen-Argyle Head Coach Nevin Lubarski. “We moved William (McGlynn) from point guard to wing towards the end of the season and those two guys have really fed off each other well ever since then. When they play like that, we are tough to beat.” In total, Pagnac and McGlynn combined for 52 points in the win, and Pagnac added 16 rebounds for a double-double. The game never got to running time but both teams got to put in their backups, and for the Storm, they were able to see a few guys have some success that normally don’t play. “It’s fun to see a few guys get into the game and score a few points,” said Stephen-Argyle Head Coach Nevin Lubarski. “We had brothers out there together with one of our Seniors and to see them all on the court at the same time was special. It was also great to see the support from our other guys when they were succeeding and scoring.” Climax-Fisher would be assessed a few technical fouls in the final few minutes, and by the time the final seconds ran off the clock, it was Stephen-Argyle with the win, 87-56.
Stephen-Argyle improves to 7-16 and will now play the #2 seed in the West Sub-Section, Warren-Alvarado-Oslo next Thursday night, March 10. “We are going to have to play a great game on Thursday if we want to win,” said Stephen-Argyle Head Coach Nevin Lubarski. “All phases of our game are going to have to be excellent and hopefully we come out firing and can give them a good game.” Climax-Fisher ends their season with a final record of 3-22 with the loss.
1st | 2nd | Final | |
Climax-Fisher | 26 | 30 | 56 |
Stephen-Argyle | 47 | 40 | 87 |
For Climax-Fisher | Points | Rebounds | Assists/Steals |
Ryan Morris | 12 | 1 | 3 assists/4 steals |
Carter Helgeson | 11 | 2 | 1 assist/1 steal |
Ethan Evitts | 10 | 2 | 1 block/1 steal |
Aaron Egeland | 9 | 2 | |
Aiden Rogenes | 8 | ||
Paul Dimas | 2 | 2 assists | |
Dylan Korynta | 2 | 1 | 1 steal |
Jason Beiswenger | 2 |
Stephen-Argyle | Points | Rebounds | Assists/Steals |
Colten Pagnac | 29 | 16 | 5 assists/6 steals |
William McGlynn | 23 | 6 | 6 assists/4 steals |
Colin McGregor | 9 | 2 | 2 assists |
Aiden Anderson | 9 | 4 | 1 assist/1 block |
Riley Clauson | 7 | 5 | 2 assists |
Jackson Kekke | 3 | 2 | |
Darby Benitt | 3 | ||
Caden Pagnac | 2 | ||
Blaine Smith | 1 | 1 | |
Cooper Clauson | 1 | 1 |