Superior hoopers drop pair of games

Sometimes a break in the schedule can be a momentum killer. 

It’s not an excuse and the youthful Superior High teams would not use it as an excuse, but this first weekend following the Christmas break was not good to the Bobcats and Lady Bobcats. 

The boys team lost to Seeley on Friday night in Superior, 67-57, then fell to Eureka 65-60 after a long bus ride to the Lincoln County school which is 190 miles each way. 

The Superior girls suffered a similar fate, losing at home to Seeley 44-40 in a hard-fought game, then dropping a 60-52 game in Eureka to the Lady Lions. 

The Lady Bobcats, who fell to 2-5 on the year with the twin losses, came into the contests having lost three of their four games by four points or less. 

In the Friday home game versus Seeley, the visitors eked out a 12-11 lead after one quarter of play, then amped up their defense in the second quarter where they held the Lady Cats to five points while scoring 14 of their own, giving them a 26-16 halftime advantage. 

But Superior, which got a game-high 23 points from sophomore guard Jose Crabb, used their defense in the third quarter to hold Seeley to four points, allowing them to trim three points off the lead.  Heading into the final quarter, the Blackhawks were in front 30-23. 

The Cats kept battling and took three more points off the Seeley lead in the fourth quarter, but it was not enough to erase the visitors’ lead. 

Lillian Boyd led Seeley with 16 points. 

Saturday evening in Eureka was nearly a repeat of the game with Seeley, with both teams playing even up in a quarter that ended tied at 11. 

Superior then cranked up their offense, outscoring the host team 19-11 in the second quarter on their way to a 30-22 halftime lead. 

But the second half was pretty much all Eureka as the Lady Lions out-pointed Superior 38-22 en route to the eight-point margin of victory. 

Senior forward Braelyn Mangold led the Lady Bobcats with 21 points, while Crabb added 12 to the Superior effort.  Eureka’s Brynn Kossman led all scorers with 23 points. 

The Bobcats boys, who entered the post-break portion of their schedule with a 4-1 record, saw their early season momentum slowed by Seeley and Eureka. 

In the game against Seeley in Superior, the visiting Blackhawks jumped out to a 17-9 lead after one quarter of play.  The Bobcats outscored Seeley 21-19 in the second quarter to leave Seeley with a 36-30 halftime edge. 

Seeley upped their lead in the third quarter by outscoring Superior 20-15, giving them a 56-45 lead with one quarter to play.  Superior won the fourth quarter 12-11 but it was not enough to overtake Seeley, which held on for the 67-57 win. 

The sophomore tandem of 6-5 post Landon Richards and standout guard Gannon Quinlan combined for 40 points (Gannon 24, Richards 16) for the Bobcats.  Blake Erwin scored 24 points to lead Seeley. 

Saturday, after the long bus ride over snowy roads, the Bobcats fell behind Eureka 22-16 after the first quarter of play.  The Lions increased their lead by one in the second quarter, giving them a 36-29 lead at the halftime intermission. 

The second half was a back-and-forth affair as the two teams traded baskets over the final two quarters.  Each team had 20 points in the third, then Superior outscored the Lions 11-9 in the final quarter, but it was not enough to overcome the Eureka lead. 

Gannon once again led the Bobcats with 28 points, while Richards added 16 to the Superior cause.  Eureka, which rose to 3-2 on the year, was led by Tyce VanOrden, who had 17.  Three other Lions scored in double figures for the winners. 

The Bobcats and Lady Bobcats have one game this week, a pair of road games versus Darby this Friday (Jan 10).