BY BUDDY TABLER
Special to the Tribune
NICKERSON 54, LARNED 53 – Larned nearly rallied from a 19-point deficit, but fell short when Talon Reynolds' desperation 3-pointer missed at the final buzzer. The Panthers missed seven of eight free throws and committed two turnovers after leading 53-42.
Cade Colglazier dominated inside with 22 points and 12 rebounds. Carson Shaver added 14 points for Latened (2-11, 0-2 CKL). Carter Crosby added eight points.
Nickerson's Taylor Engelland (15), Alex King (12), and Garrett Crossman (11) scored in double figures. Engelland sparked a 5-point play with a basket, free throw and assist to Skylar Wakefield for a 53-42 lead.
Nickerson outscored Larned 15-4 for a 27-13 halftime lead. Larned trailed 42-31 starting the fourth quarter but a furious defensive effort and hot shooting enabled Larned to outscore the Panthers 22-12 in a fourth quarter rally that fell just one point short. At one point in the fourth quarter, the Indians made seven straight shots to pull back into the game.
Larned’s first half performance offensively was 6 of 22 shots for 27%. After halftime, the Indians got hot and made 16 of 25 shots for 64% as their rally came within that one point of being successful.
Except for the last six minutes of the fourth quarter, Nickerson’s offense was smooth and efficient as they got the shots they wanted and made most of them. The Panthers made 20 of 37 shots for 54% as it looked like they were on their way to an easy win until Larned’s furious rally.
The Panthers helped fuel the Larned surge as they missed seven straight free throws in the fourth quarter as Larned had to foul and put Nickerson on the free throw line, hoping for them to miss. The strategy nearly worked.
Larned will travel to Halstead Friday for a Central Kansas League game against the Dragons.
Larned 9 4 18 22 – 53
Nickerson 12 15 15 12 – 54
LARNED (2-11, 0-2)—Colglazier 10 2-3 22, Shaver 6 0-0 14, Crosby 3 2-2 8, Reynolds 2 1-3 6, Martin 1 0-0 2, Smith 0 1-2 1, Totals 22 6-10 53.
NICKERSON (3-10, 1-1)—Engelland 6-10 1-3 15, King 4-5 4-5 12, Crossman 3-7 4-6 11, Wakefield 1-6 0-2 2, Riley Linn 1-3 0-0 2, Walker 3-3 1-4 8, Peterson 1-2 0-0 2, Yoder 1-1 0-0 2, Totals 20-37 10-20 54.
3-pointers—L 3 (Shaver 2, Reynolds 1), N 4-12 (Engelland 2-5, Walker 1-1, Crossman 1-2, King 0-1, Peterson 0-1, Wakefield 0-2). Rebounds—N 16 (Crossman 4, Peterson 4). Assists—N 10 (Crossman 4). Steals—N 1 (King 1).
LARNED GIRLS 41, NICKERSON 22 – Larned freshman Jadyn Crosby scored 17 points and dominated inside to spark the Indians past Nickerson 41-22 in Tuesday's Central Kansas League basketball game.
Akielah Collins added 8, Jadyn Pinkston 7 and Abby Holt 5. The Lady Indians made 18 of 50 field goal attempts for 36% and 2 of 15 from the 3-point line.
Larned jumped to a 12-4 first-quarter lead on the strength of full-court pressure defense and cruised to a Central Kansas League victory here Tuesday evening, 41-22.
It was not a fluid offensive night for either team as Larned shot just 34% and Nickerson 23% for the game but the Lady Indians’ defense forced 24 Nickerson turnovers and turned many of those into baskets.
Larned increased their lead to 26-11 at halftime but a 9-3 third quarter advantage for Nickerson pulled the Lady Panthers to within single digits to start the fourth quarter at 29-20. Larned put away any Nickerson hopes by posting a 12-2 fourth quarter run for the final 41-22 margin.
Nickerson made 7 of 31 shots in the game as the turnovers limited their offensive possessions and shot attempts. Larned’s strong defensive effort limited the scoring of the Lady Panthers with nobody scoring in double figures. Kalyse Abernathy scored 5 points to lead Nickerson and Centhiya Bankston, Avery Hambrick Ayla Ontjes each had 4 points. The loss left Nickerson with a 3-10 record.
Larned (7-6, 2-0 CKL) travels to Halstead on Friday to take on a talented Lady Dragon team in an important Central Kansas League game.
Larned 12 14 3 12 – 41
Nickerson 4 7 9 2 – 22
LARNED (7-6, 2-0)—Crosby 7 2-4 17, Holt 2 0-0 5, Jaidyn Pinkston 3 1-2 7, Collins 4 0-0 8, Reinert 1 0-0 2, Reynolds 1 0-0 2, Totals 18-50 3-6 41.
NICKERSON (3-10, 0-2)—Abernathy 2 1-2 5, Ontjes 1 1-2 4, Bankston 1 2-2 4, Hambrick 2 0-0 4, Groth 1 0-0 3, Morrell 0 2-2 2, Totals 7-31 6-8 22.
3-pointers—L 2 (Crosby 1, Holt 1); N 2 (Groth 1, Ontjes 1).
