skip navigation

Trojans Take Tough Loss to East Grand Forks

By Craig Olson, 03/04/23, 12:45AM CST

Share

The East Grand Forks boys’ basketball team took excellent care of the ball with only 4 turnovers, won the rebounding battle 38-30, and posted a  61-58 win over the Barnesville Trojans on Friday night.

“Had a tough one tonight,” acknowledged Barnesville Head Coach Matt Askegaard. “A big game with seeding implications. We also had a lot going on before the game, as we recognized our seniors. Either way, we knew this game was going to be a dog fight as East Grand has been playing well as of late.”

Askegaard continued, “They really come at you with a different style of basketball. They will rotate different 5 guys every 4-5 minutes or so. They want you to play fast and out of control. We did that for much of the first half, but we were able to take a lead at the half. Defensively I thought we were solid, but we didn't rebound. We were leaking out to get into transition before we were securing the ball. Offensively, our shot selection wasn't great and we were rushing a great amount.  In the second half we dominated the first 13 minutes, building a double digit lead. We did this with poise in the half court both offensively and defensively. However, we fell back into the undisciplined trap and couldn't get out.”

Gannon Bolgrean registered a double-double (16 points, 12 rebounds, 3 steals) to lead the Trojans.  Tate Inniger added 14 points and 7 rebounds, and Zach Bredman contributed 10 points, 3 rebounds, 2 assists and 2 blocked shots.  Wyatt Suter finished with 8 points and 5 boards.

“I have to give EGF credit,” added Coach Askegaard. “They stuck to their guns and played the way they wanted. They hit shots down the stretch and got stops when they needed to. We can look back and really analyze the last 5 minutes, but there is more than that that decides the game. We missed free throws in situations when you need to make them and even had a chance to tie at the buzzer with a good look.  This loss is tough and hard to swallow, but we can't let it define the rest of the season. Come tournament time we are going to have to play with more poise and discipline and I know we can do that because I have seen it before and believe we can.”

The loss drops Barnesville to 15-8 overall and 4-6 in the Heart O’ Lakes Conference. The Trojans head to Frazee Saturday for their last conference and regular season game. Early tip of is at 3:30pm.