Photo by Jake Przytarski Lakeview’s Billy Errington rises up for a jumper during their game against Central Minnesota Christian Schools on Thursday. The Lakers fell to the Bluejays 70-58.

COTTONWOOD - It’s been a season full of ups and downs for the Lakeview boys basketball team.

Fresh off of an overtime victory against Montevideo on Tuesday, the Lakers couldn’t come out on top in Thursday’s Camden Conference home matchup with Central Minnesota Christian, as the Bluejays utilized a late scoring run to win 70-58.

For Lakers coach Jared Keaveny, the Bluejays’ ability to get into a shooting rhythm in the first half proved costly given their ability to knock down shots beyond the arc.

“I think we did some good things,” said Keaveny. “I think (our) defense could’ve been a little bit better in the first half. We let them some confidence from the outside and they’re a good shooting team.”

In what was a tightly-contested opening half, the Lakers held the early momentum thanks to a basket by Aaron Loe and another by Parker Hoffman to give Lakeview a 15-14 advantage on the scoreboard.

Utilizing their collection of strong outside shooters, the Bluejays responded with a barrage of 3-point shots that helped them seize control of the lead down the stretch and into the break with a slim 34-30 lead.

In assessing the performance of the Lakers defense, Keaveny acknowledged that his team was sporadic in contesting outside shots in the first half.

“It was kind of 50/50,” said Keaveny. “There were times where we did some good things where we were right up on them, and then there were some times where we left them completely wide open because we didn’t rotate and those are the ones good teams hit.”

Out of the half, the Bluejays opened the scoring with a pair of baskets to push their lead to eight before the Lakers answered with a 6-0 scoring run to make it a two-point ballgame.

Continuing to take advantage of offensive possessions with strong ball-movement, the Lakers climbed all the way back to take their first lead since the first half at 50-49, thanks to a basket by Connor Larsen.

The slim lead by the Lakers would be short-lived, however, as the Bluejays took full advantage of a crucial 21-8 scoring run down the stretch of the second half that put Lakeview away for good with the final score of 70-58.

The Lakers were led in scoring by Hoffman who finished the night with 18 points on 7 of 10 from the field. Carter Louwagie and Loe also ended the game in double-figures with 10 and 12 points respectively. Tyler Imes nearly ended his night with a double-double – tallying seven points to go along with a team-high 10 rebounds. Billy Errington and Reid Bot tied for second on the team in rebounds with six apiece.

Back in action on Tuesday with a road-matchup against the Canby Lancers at 7:30 p.m., the Lakers will look to improve to 6-11 following Thursday night’s loss.

Looking ahead, Keaveny believes his team needs to improve on executing the little things that end up making a big difference in the final score.

“We just have to continue doing the little things we’re talking about,” said Keaveny. “We’re a team that we have to value every little possession, getting that one extra rebound, one extra loose ball, those are the thigns that we have to do. We have to find a way just to create one or two more possessions.”