Canby Lancers guard Zach Ourada (11) drives to the basket in day one of the 2022 Marshall Holiday Classic against the Jackson County Central Huskies on Friday afternoon. 

MARSHALL – The Murray County Central boys basketball team battled back from a slow first half for a 55-41 win over Renville County West at the Marshall Holiday Classic at Southwest Minnesota State University Friday afternoon.

The Rebels’ offense started slow, but it heated up in the second half. After being held to 18 first-half points, they caught fire for 37 points in the second.

“Simply executing,” MCC head coach Tim Cariveau said when asked what the difference was between the first and second half. “I think we had a lot of good looks in the first half, but we didn’t drop from [3-point range] at all and we missed some bunnies. When most started falling, the confidence came, the energy came, and that kind of just builds momentum for us… I think they were just a little bit on Christmas break still for that first half.”

Bryce Hoekman led the charge for the Rebels with 16 points, followed closely by Christian Tentinger’s 14.

The game was the definition of a defensive battle. Neither team was giving an inch, and the score stood at 20-18 in favor of the Jaguars at halftime.

The Rebels’ length and adjustments’ in terms of how they played off ball were key to their defensive efforts, particularly in their ability to clog the passing lanes, Cariveau said.

Hoekman’s abilities as a rim protector prevented RCW from getting easy buckets while he was on the floor. He finished the game with four blocks and altered many more shots with his long reach.

Both teams played physically, resulting in both teams getting in foul trouble. In the second half, both teams were in the bonus with nearly seven minutes remaining. The two teams combined for 33 fouls on the night.

Turnovers were a problem for both teams but seemed more a result of tenacious defense rather than careless offense. Both teams were jamming the passing lanes all night, and with the pace of play nearly grinding to a halt, teams were forced to take risks in order to make plays. MCC finished the game with 12 steals, including three apiece from Tanner Graphenteen and Dylan Kluis, while the Jaguars finished with eight.

Tentinger led the Rebels’ rebounding efforts with 12, including four on the offensive glass. Hoekman had a game-high six offensive rebounds.

The Murray County Central Rebels (3-1) will play again Saturday when they face off against Minneota at 10:30 a.m. in the Marshall Holiday Tournament.

MCC 55, RCW 41

MCC 18 37

RCW 20 21

INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS

SCORING (FG-FGA-PTS): MCC (Hoekman 6-14-16; Tentinger 5-9-14)

PASSING (AST-TO): MCC (Graphenteen 2-1)

REBOUNDING (ORB-TRB): MCC (Tentinger 3-12; Hoekman 6-8; Deacon 2-7)

DEFENSIVE (STL-BLK): MCC (Hoekman 0-4; Graphenteen 3-0; Kluis 3-0)