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February 12, 2000
Cougars edge MVLBy BOB VARMETTE Journal Sports Writer NEW ULM -- Payback. Dan Unke's off-balance baseline jumper carried wide as time expired in the second overtime and the Cedar Mountain Cougars survived for a 69-68 win over the Minnesota Valley Lutheran Chargers Friday night in Tomahawk Conference boys basketball. The win vaults the Cougars into the conference lead alone and avenged a 14-point loss to MVL in Morgan in the teams' first meeting of the season. "This is a big one for us," Cedar Mountain forward Adam Williams said. "This is payback for us. We know they're a great team. But we played great defense tonight. Man, it was great." Williams -- the 6-foot-6 Cougars' senior -- scored 19 points and grabbed 12 rebounds. Senior Brandon Kerkhoff led the Chargers with a game-high 20 points, including a clutch 3 in the first overtime that sent the game into the second extra period. Reese Klawitter also reached double figures for Cedar Mountain (15-3, 13-2) with 10 points. "I kind of challenged them after (the 14-point loss to MVL)," Cedar Mountain coach Keith Klawitter said. "That was a bad week for us. We had two losses. Maybe that was what we needed to have happen to us." Maybe it was. After dropping the game to MVL and then another to Sleepy Eye High, the Cougars haven't lost since. While MVL cruised in the game at Morgan, this game was tight throughout. But MVL -- despite its opportunities -- never could get over the hump. "Cedar Mountain played a really good defensive game tonight," MVL coach Craig Morgan said. "They played well, you've got to give them a lot of the credit. They took us out of some things we wanted to do." Trailing the Cougars by five entering the fourth quarter, MVL (15-4, 12-3) rallied as Cedar Mountain seemed to lose its composure. The Chargers tied the game at 61-61 and sent the game into the first overtime period. "Maybe we got a little too complacent," Keith Klawitter said. "We weren't as aggressive. We spent so much time protecting the ball from their pressure we lost touch with trying to attack the basket." The Cougars also lost their shooting touch. After going 20-for-43 (46.5 percent) from the field in the first three quarters, Cedar Mountain iced down to 4-for-12 in the fourth quarter. MVL, though, continued to find the range, hitting 6-for-13 (46.2 percent) from the field. Unke was 2-for-4 from the field in the fourth quarter, and finished the game with 18 points to lead the Chargers in addition to grabbing a game-high 18 rebounds. Jesse Pfeifer added 14 and Justin Ohm had 12 for MVL before fouling out late in the second overtime. But the Chargers were out of their element in the slower-tempo game. And in the second half, MVL fell behind in the rebound battle, getting outboarded 27-21. "They really rebounded well in the second half," Morgan said. "And we didn't rebound, except for Unke. We also made some decisions that weren't too smart. ... We didn't play tough enough." Thinking about payback more than the conference lead, it was the Cougars who always seemed to respond when pushed by the Chargers. "We knew they were a comeback team," Cedar Mountain center Ryan Steffensmeier said. "We knew they had it in them. They were going to keep playing, they weren't going to die." Cedar Mountain held an 18-17 lead after the first quarter. They never could shake the Chargers -- their biggest lead of the first half was only five points. When Williams took a seat after picking up his third foul with 2:23 in the second quarter with the Cougars up 28-23, it set the stage for a 10-2 run by MVL to close out the half. MVL upped its margin to 39-33 early in the third quarter. But the Cougars then went on a 13-1 run, including three 3s, one by Williams, who drained a 20-footer from the top of the key for a 46-40 Cedar Mountain advantage. "It's my first game back since my injury," Williams said. "It was a big game for me. It really lifted my confidence." A little payback will do that. In the junior varsity game, MVL won, 54-25. Cedar Mountain will host Sleepy Eye Tuesday in another payback game. MVL will play Gibbon-Fairfax-Winthrop in Winthrop, also Tuesday. CEDAR MTN 18 12 21 10 5 3--69 MVL 17 16 13 15 5 2--68 CEDAR MOUNTAIN (69): R.Klawitter 4-7 0-6 10, Sell 0-0 0-0 0, Potter 3-13 0-0 7, Hillesheim 3-3 0-0 6, Kerkhoff 6-16 5-7 20, Williams 7-13 4-8 19, Steffensmeier 3-8 1-2 7. Totals 26-60 10-23 69. MVL (68): Liggett 3-6 1-2 7, Metzger 1-3 0-0 2, Ohm 4-7 4-4 12, Lohmiller 2-2 0-0 4, Unke 6-16 5-6 18, Beilke 0-2 0-0 0, Pfeifer 7-14 0-0 14, Ross 1-1 0-0 2, Wendland 3-11 1-2 9, Polzin 0-1 0-2 0. Totals 27-63 11-16 68. 3-point goals--Cedar Mountain 7-19 (Kerkhoff 3-5, R.Klawitter 2-4, Williams 1-1, Potter 1-9), MVL 3-12 (Wendland 2-7, Unke 1-1, Liggett 0-2, Ohm 0-2). Fouled out--Metzger, Ohm. Total fouls--Cedar Mountain 15, MVL 22. Technical--R.Klawitter. Rebounds--Cedar Mountain 39 (Williams 12), MVL 37 (Unke 18). Turnovers--Cedar Mountain 18, MVL 18.
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