By Michael Buhler
TSnews
The Conway Springs Cardinals boys basketball team hit some turbulence to start the new year.
After an 18-point loss at Central Plains League foe Belle Plaine last Tuesday (see below), the Cardinals lost 48-36 last Friday at home to CPL rival Chaparral.
Against the visiting Roadrunners last Friday, Conway Springs (2-6) trailed 14-6 after the first period, 24-14 at the intermission and 35-26 going to the fourth quarter.
“I felt as if our defensive effort was a little better against Chaparral,” Conway Springs coach Paul Lange said. “However, we still had trouble with soft closeouts and bringing the necessary physicality. If we could’ve been better in those two areas and shaved a few of their points off the final score, we might’ve had a chance to get that win.”
Taylor Wykes paced the Cardinals with 17 points, while Nash Johnsen added eight in the loss.
“Offensively against Chaparral, we were pretty anemic once again,” Lange said. “We pointed out to the guys at halftime that they hadn’t shot a single free throw to that point in the game, and we only ended up with five for the game. That is a key indicator for us as we evaluate and coach the guys. Our overall shot selection isn’t good, and we’re playing too soft to compete at this level.”
Conway Springs played host to CPL foe Douglass earlier this week and is at home again Friday against Wichita Independent. The Cardinals compete at the Chaparral Roadrunner Classic next week in Harper County.
“We’ll keep practicing hard, attacking our deficiencies this week, to see if we can make some noise headed into the mid-season tournament at Chaparral,” Lange said.
Conway Springs: Taylor Wykes 17, Nash Johnsen 8, Eli Howard 7, Grant Fisher 2, Cade Howell 2.
At Belle Plaine last Tuesday, the Cardinals fell behind by seven points at the end of the first period and never could recover in a 59-41 loss to the host Dragons.
Johnsen led the Cardinals with 16 points.
Conway Springs: Nash Johnsen 14, Taylor Wykes 8, Grant Fisher 6, Eli Howard 6, Cade Howell 5, Connor Rusco 2.
