M/P-B loses 64-62 to Powers Lake-Burke Central at state tournament

Maxwell O'Neill, The Jamestown Sun, N.D.
·3 min read

Mar. 17—BISMARCK — The Medina/Pingree-Buchanan Thunder shot better than the previous day but were unable to keep up in a 64-62 loss to Powers Lake-Burke Central on Thursday, March 17, at the Bismarck Event Center.

The Thunder had a chance to win the game on the final possession, but Rylen Wick missed the shot.

"It's a tough loss because any time you go to the state tournament you want to win," Thunder head coach Bob Young said. "As a team, we were disappointed about last night and we talked about how we wanted to get fifth place really bad and we wanted to go 2-1 in the state tournament, that would be something to brag about. So, we were really disappointed, we wanted to come away with a win today."

The game was tight throughout with the largest lead being a Ranchers (21-5) nine-point lead.

The Thunder (21-6) shot 47% from the field and made 40% of their 3-point attempts. The Thunder had two total assists in the first-round loss to Beulah but had seven against the Ranchers, which Young said helped his team make shots.

"We made some shots," Young said. "I think we got more open today, it was a little bit less defensive pressure so kids had opportunities to take shots and today we made them. I think as an offense we moved the ball pretty well today and Josh Moser came off some screens and sets we were running and when he got open he really took advantage, he shot the ball really well all day."

On the scoring front, the Thunder were led by Moser's 34 points, which Young said he believes is a career-high for the senior.

Despite going 6-for-20 from the field, Wick still managed to make an impact while scoring 17 points and grabbing 11 rebounds.

The biggest difference in the game came in the turnover margin as the Thunder turned the ball over 11 times and gave up 20 points off those turnovers, while the Ranchers gave up only three points on six turnovers.

The Thunder return to the floor at 1 p.m. on Saturday, March 18, when they take on Warwick in the seventh-place game.

"We talk about as a team that we have an opportunity to win our last game and not many people have that opportunity," Young said. "It's as simple as that, most teams end their season with a loss, but because of the brackets, you get to play it out all the way. We get a chance to win our final game and to get a W at the state tournament. So we have to go in with those intentions and work hard and try to get the job done."

M/P-B 62, PL-BC 64

M/P-B: 12 15 18 17 — 62

PL-BC: 17 15 11 21 — 64

Points leaders:

M/P-B: Josh Moser 34, Rylen Wick 17, Sawyer Wanzek 5

PL-BC: Tyson Enget 30, Gracin Schroeder 13, Beau Kearsley 6, Jaden Bullinger 6, Luke Fraunfelter 4

Assists leaders:

M/P-B: Mark Thomas 2, Gage Magstadt 2, Wanzek 1, Moser 1, Wick 1

PL-BC: Enget 8, Fraunfelter 1, Kearsley 1

Leading rebounders:

M/P-B: Wick 11, Moser 7, Wanzek 6

PL-BC: Enget 7, Kearsley 6, Bullinger 5

Full Bracket Below:

Day One:

#2 Shiloh Christian 69 vs. RD2 Powers Lake-Burke Central 38

#3 Beulah 48 vs. RD3 Medina/Pingree-Buchanan 31

#1 Central Cass 58 vs. RD1 Warwick 46

#4 Thompson 48 vs. #5 Des Lacs Burlington 55

Day Two:

RD2 Powers Lake-Burke Central 64 vs. RD3 Medina/Pingree-Buchanan 62

RD1 Warwick 67 vs. #4 Thompson 83

#2 Shiloh Christian vs. #3 Beulah, 6:30 p.m.

#1 Central Cass vs. #5 Des Lacs-Burlington, 8:15 p.m.