Photos by Samantha Davis: Murray County Central's Carter Hanson goes up for a layup in the first half against Lac qui Parle Valley Wednesday afternoon in a Red Rock Conference prep boys basketball game at Southwest Minnesota State University. The Rebels defeated the Eagles 71-40.

MARSHALL — The Murray County Central boys basketball team’s consistent attack to the basket and rebounding effort shined in a 71-40 non-conference win over Lac qui Parle Valley Wednesday afternoon, completing a sweep in the holiday tournament held at Southwest Minnesota State University.

The win marks three straight for the Rebels, who were led by Aidan Swenson’s 24 points, two blocks and nine rebounds. Four different Rebels finished in double-figures, with Dugan Kluis adding in 11 points each and both Carter Hanson and Cayden Veldhuisen each adding 10.

“I think, especially in transition, it [our driving] was pretty consistent. I think we were a little out of control at times, with maybe throwing up some shots that weren’t off of two feet, or [not] very balanced, but they saw the lanes,” MCC head coach Tim Cariveau said. “[We played with] consistency in executing the game plan, what is asked of them through the huddles and calls with offense, and [didn’t] worry about the other stuff.”

MCC was fast to build a lead, holding a 37-17 advantage by halftime. It continued to hold control of the game through its zone defense and efficient shooting.

“In the 2-3 [zone], I still feel like we’re getting 2-on-1’s too often… but in the 1-3-1 today, which we haven’t got a chance to put that on the floor very often, I was happy to see that,” Cariveau said regarding MCC’s zone defense. “I thought we scrambled well out of it, and made them [LQPV] uncomfortable on the catches.”

The Rebels defeated Minneota 71-65 on Saturday in the first day of the holiday tournament with a strong showing at the foul line. MCC shot 21 of 25 on free throws, which Cariveau noted was their best performance at the line so far this season.

MCC’s height in Wyatt Thomspon and Swenson have served the team well this season on the glass and in paint offense. The two stand at 6-foot-7 and 6-foot-5, respectively.

LQPV entered the night looking for its first win of the season.

The first few possessions for both teams remained scoreless until Cayden Veldhuisen got MCC on the board with an open layup, just as LQPV responded with a 3-pointer.

The Rebels played an occasional full-court press and a zone defense, but their attack and efficient shooting made the difference to pull away with an early double-digit lead. Nearly all of MCC’s points came from a drive to the basket or a second-chance possession with an aggressive offensive rebounding effort. The Rebels made one 3-pointer in the game.

“We got guys that can do it [rebound], especially with Wyatt and Swenny [Swenson], but I thought that Cayden Veldhuisen really put his mind to it,” Cariveau said. “He had two early ones, and it got him two buckets as well. I thought he played a really good game all around. Yeah, it’s [our offensive rebounding] something that can really be a positive.”

MCC outrebounded the Eagles 34-23, and 15-7 on the offensive glass.

Swenson was again a dominant force down low, and led MCC with 14 first-half points.

“A lot of people know that he [Swenson] was sick at the beginning of the year, so he’s probably just getting back to full strength,” Cariveau said. “I was really proud of his defense, he was talking like crazy.”

MCC extended its early lead with a Hanson driving layup and a Swenson putback following a pair of Kluis free throws. A Veldhuisen steal and fastbreak put the Rebels up 15-6.

Hanson had back-to-back layups along with one from Kluis to further build a 25-13 edge with just over five minutes to go.

MCC did give up a few turnovers with the Eagles turning up the defensive tone, yet the Rebels didn’t show any fallback and made up for the errors with their offense and eventually became hot on the defensive end, returning the favor by forcing 23 total turnovers. MCC committed 12.

Kluis, Hanson, Veldhuisen and Behrends all had three steals as the Rebels’ grabbed 15 on the night to LQPV’s 10.

Tristan Behrends, Swenson and Kluis ended the half each with a basket to give MCC its 20-point lead heading into the locker room.

Ball movement and tenacious defense was the name of the game to open the second half for MCC, coming out hot with a string of steals and fastbreak layups. The Rebels started the half on a 10-0 run and never looked back as they cruised the rest of the way to victory.

MCC (5-2) will look to keep its momentum going when it returns home in the new year next Tuesday to host Edgerton (4-2) at 7:15 p.m.