BY JIM MISUNAS
jmisunas@gbtribune.com
KINGMAN – Maddox Spray sparked the Great Bend Panthers with a 13-point first half. Standout Ian Premer split his 24-point outing 13/11 to power Great Bend past Conway Springs 58-43 in Thursday's Kingman Basketball Classic.
Spray was on fire during an 11-point second period off lightning-quick drives to the basket. Spray scored seven consecutive points for a 27-12 lead and converted two more baskets for a 32-15 lead.
"Maddox has days when he looks strong and plays through contact," said Great Bend coach Kyle Kriegh. "When Maddox is locked in, he gets steals and plays defense like he did tonight."
Great Bend (1-1) knocked down 10 of 19 field goals with zero second-quarter turnovers to roar to a 35-16 halftime lead. The Panthers' solid team defense held the Cardinals to 6 of 22 shooting (33%) with seven turnovers.
The first-half was vintage teamwork offensively and defensively with 1-3-1 and man-to-man. The Panthers held 6-6 Nash Johnsen to 12 points and 5 of 15 shooting. Taylor Wykes took advantage with a solid 19-point night.
"Early on, we played team defense in our man and 1-3-1," Kriegh said. "Johnsen is a strong, solid player and we've got two guys we threw at him."
The Panthers were unable to play effectively after halftime in a 23-point half. Great Bend converted 15 of 36 shots (42%). The Cardinals' second-half half-court trap gave the Panthers trouble.
"We weren't as pleased second half," Kriegh said. "We've got to battle through adversity and play mentally tougher."
Kriegh was pleased with reserves Daxton Minton, Izeah Reed and Cooper Ohnmacht for strong contributions off the bench.
Conway Springs 5 11 10 17 – 43
Great Bend 13 22 8 15 – 58
CONWAY SPRINGS (0-3)—Wykes 8-11 3-5 19, Johnsen 5-15 1-2 12, Osner 2-6 3-7 7, Fisher 0-1 2-4 2, Rusco 1-1 0-0 2, Howard 0-9 1-2 1, Totals 43.
GREAT BEND (1-1)—Premer 10-19 4-9 24, Spray 6-15 1-1 13, Hall 3-6 2-4 8, Coombs 3-5 1-2 7, Ohnmacht 1-4 0-0 2, Minton 1-1 0-0 2, Reed 1-1 0-0 2, Nicholson 0-1 0-0 0, Dicks 0-3 0-0 0, Totals 58.
3-pointers—CS 1-11 (Johnsen 1-3, Fisher 0-1, Osner 0-1, Howard 0-6); GB 0-11 (Premer 0-1, Ohnmacht 0-1, Coombs 0-2, Dicks 0-2, Spray 0-5).
KINGMAN BOYS
12-5—Kingman 46, Conway Springs 42; Sterling 52, Haven 49
12-7—Great Bend 58, Conway Springs; Haven vs. Wichita Sunrise
12-8—Great Bend at Kingman; Sterling vs. Wichita Sunrise
12-9—1ST—Great Bend/Kingman winner; 3RD—Great Bend/Kingman loser; 5TH—Conway Springs
