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Washington Evening Journal
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Demons sweep Panthers
Washington boys and girls basketball teams improve to 2-1 in SEC play
Southeast Iowa Union offers audio versions of articles using Instaread. Some words may be mispronounced.
WASHINGTON — Washington completed a sweep of Southeast Conference rival Mt. Pleasant on Friday. The Demons girls basketball team rolled to a 44-22 victory, while the boys' team battled in a game of runs and held on for a 55-47 win.
The Washington boys' team came back after a first half deficit to avenge a defeat to its SEC rival last season. After scoring just six points in the second quarter, the Demons found themselves down 34-23 with 5:50 to go in the third.
In the past, Washington coach Collin Stark would have called a timeout. Instead, he let the Demons work things out on the floor. Kael Williams drilled a 3-pointer on Washington’s next possession, which ignited a 19-0 run and gave the Demons an eight-point lead with 6:29 left in the game.
MP missed eight shots and committed four of its 18 turnovers during the run. Washington hounded the glass on both ends against a taller Panthers team, ending possessions after one shot on defense, and earning second chance opportunities offensively.
“They were trying to get the ball inside and our guys were there and then we took it the other way,” Stark said after the game. “You could tell that our conditioning is starting to get to where it needs to be, where you could tell Mt. Pleasant was starting to slow things down a little bit and we had that burst, that energy that just fueled us in the second half.”
Rajan Roth and Drew Conrad combined for 16 of Washington’s 19 points during the run. Conrad led all scorers with 22 points, along with five rebounds, two assists and three steals.
Roth finished with 14 points and logged a double-double, leading the Demons with 12 rebounds. Roth’s intensity around the rim has helped him average 12.1 points and 8.3 boards per contest.
“I think I just go in there and just want to jump has high as I can and just go make (shots),” Roth said. “I just try to slow myself down to make sure I go up soft with the ball and just make them.”
Mt. Pleasant’s Isaiah Lange finally ended the Panthers drought when he converted an and-1 layup to make it 42-37 after the free throw. The Demons increased the lead as high as 12, but the Panthers made one last push before the final buzzer.
Down 10 with one minute left, MP’s Aiden Humble was fouled shooting a 3-pointer on consecutive possessions. Conrad split a pair of free throws in between the trips, but Humble made all six freebies to trim Washington’s lead to five with 36 seconds to play.
Humble tried the same move on MP’s next possession after Conrad went 1 of 2 again. But the Panthers senior didn’t get the call a third time. Conrad sunk two more free throws to seal the Demons win.
Lange led the Panthers in scoring with 15 points. The sophomore added nine rebounds, continuing a bright start to a season where he leads the Panthers in both categories. Humble made two 3s earlier in the game and finished with 12 points.
“Washington did a nice job there in the second half getting to the basket and causing some turnovers,” Mt. Pleasant coach Eric Rawson said. “This group wants to get better and they want to win. So, it’ll come.”
There would be no comeback effort for the MP girls' team in the first game of the night. The Panthers went down 12-2 after one quarter and were outscored 26-16 in the second half. MP’s 22 points are the fewest Washington has allowed in a game this season.
The Demons played excellent half-court defense, and mixed in a full-court press to keep the Panthers off balance. Mt. Pleasant scored just four points in the second quarter and trailed 18-6 at halftime.
“That’s big, especially early on,” Washington coach Colin Mulford said. “You don’t want teams to feel comfortable offensively right away. If they feel comfortable those first couple of minutes, they’re going to feel comfortable for the rest. So it’s really big to make to just make sure we have that pressure.”
Washington’s defensive pressure meant MP could only decrease the deficit to 11 points in the third. With Washington up 24-13, it went on a 9-1 run to close the quarter.
Four different players scored during the run, including Leighton Messinger, who buried a 3 from the right corner, one of two triples on the night. Messinger led the Demons with 14 points.
“I think my team just did a great job,” Messinger said. “We all were passing the ball around and they were just able to find, really everyone when there was open looks, and the shots were falling today. So I was really thankful for that.”
Messinger paired her scoring with a team-high six rebounds. She added two assists, one steal and a block.
Adalyn Long finished one point away from double figures for the Demons with nine points and capped off a productive outing with five rebounds, five assists and three steals. Oaklee Sobaski and Vivienne Kroll each scored six points.
Abigail Shelangoski led Mt. Pleasant in scoring with six points. Fellow starters Kynlee White and Myah Starr each scored four.
While the Panthers didn’t get enough offense generated to make a comeback, their defense, particularly in the opening two quarters, offers plenty to build on. Washington was held under 50 points for the first time in two games, and scored just six in the second quarter.
“To hold them to 18 points the first half, the way they shoot the ball, that was great,” MP coach Curt Watson. “Second half... gave up too many easy buckets, but overall our effort was really good tonight.”
The Panthers and Demons will have a break before returning to action after the new year. Both the Washington girls and boys' teams will next face Ft. Madison on Jan. 2 away from home.
Mt. Pleasant also will start the new year against SEC competition. The Panthers boys and girls teams will take on Keokuk at home Jan. 2.
