Cyclones drop game to Monarchs in overtime

The HCHS varsity boys basketball team was hoping for redemption Tuesday night at home against the Denison-Schleswig Monarchs, after dropping their previous game to them on the road Dec. 9, but dropped the game in overtime, 69-63.

“It’s a darn shame,” said Cyclones Head Coach Mitch Osborn. “It’s a game that we gave away. Give Denison credit, they hit some big 3’s. They made plays down the stretch and we didn’t, so it’s a tough lesson to learn.”

The game got off to a fast start for both teams with Junior Franz Reisz dropping the first bucket. Senior Jacob Birch made a bucket soon after to put his team up 4-0. It was a back-and-forth affair with Denison taking a 13-12 lead into the second quarter.

Senior Brad Curren opened the quarter by dropping a shot from downtown to put the Cyclones back in front by two. Reisz made a bucket a few minutes later, putting the Cyclones up by five and forcing a timeout from Monarchs head coach Derek Fink with three minutes until halftime.

The Cyclones took a 5-point lead into the locker room at halftime, with Reisz leading the way in scoring with 10 points, Birch with 8 and Curren with 7.

The third quarter opened with the Monarchs getting the first bucket to cut the Cyclones lead to three points. The Cyclones got up by nine points until the Monarchs hit 3-pointers on back-to-back possessions from Senior Carson Seuntjens and Junior Luke Wiebers. Osborn called a timeout with just under two minutes until the fourth quarter.

Osborn’s words must have rubbed off on the Cyclones, because when play resumed, Birch hit a 3-pointer, then he assisted a pass to Senior Jace Gubbels and the Cyclones were leading 49-39 heading into the final quarter.

With four and a half minutes remaining in regulation, the Monarchs hit back-to-back 3-point shots once again, trailing by just eight points. Chipping away at the Cyclones lead, the Monarchs found themselves with a chance to tie the game with five seconds remaining in regulation.

Seuntjens had the ball and went for a layup, tying the game at 61 points apiece and forcing overtime.

“He [Seuntjens] has his best games against us, no doubt about it,” Osborn said.

Overtime got underway with Senior Monarch Gavin Hipnar getting fouled, sending him to the line, where he made 1 of 2 free throws, putting the Monarchs up by one. The Monarchs made a few more key shots and finished off the Cyclones, outscoring them 8-2 in overtime.

“The reality is, Denison didn’t quit,” Osborn said. “We didn’t finish the game, we didn’t finish them off and we’re on the losing end. We didn’t respond in overtime, we didn’t bounce back and they did.”

The Cyclones will have a few days off before playing their next game Friday night at home at 7:30 p.m. against the 8-5 Creston Panthers. The Panthers are led by Junior Cael Turner with 181 points and 40 assists.

“I’m looking forward to having a game Friday, so we can move on,” Osborn said. “We’re definitely going to remember this and it’s going to be a learning experience."