Scraping their way back from a lackluster start, the Clipper varsity boys went in front of host Lester Prairie early in the second half, but with the Bulldogs hammering the ball inside, they couldn’t hang on, and their season ended on Tuesday with a 72-55 loss in their first round of the sections.
“We didn't get back in transition very well in the second half, and that really killed us,” said head coach Mike Meyer. “That’s how they got their big run on us. It took the wind out of our sail. The way we started off that game with the nerves and to claw out of that hole, that's the team we needed the whole game.”
The sixth-ranked Bulldogs took the jump ball in for a three, and with two more triples and a two-point bucket, got off to an 11-0 start before Brennan Kortuem responded with a three.
After Carson Lyons put an offensive rebound up for a bucket and make a pair of free shots, Braeden Smith stole and ran in a layup and dropped in a turn-around jumper, and Kortuem drilled another three that pulled the Clippers within two, 21-19.
Later, Kortuem sank another three while his brother Alex Kortuem followed with a triple, and after Lyons dashed in another layup and made two more free throws, the Clippers were within a point, 27-26.
But the Bulldogs buried a three down the stretch to take a 30-26 lead into their locker room.
With a Lyons layup followed by a Kortuem three to start the second half, the Clippers took a one-point lead, but soon after, Lyons took the bench with three fouls, and the Bulldogs scored the next seven points.
“Anytime this season that Carson or Brennan got in foul trouble, it puts a little more pressure on guys that haven't been in the situation as much,” Meyer said. “Those two are confident with the ball. They know how to attack. They know when to attack, when the shoot, when to kick.”
En route to 26 points, Brennan Kortuem sunk to more threes, Lyons made two more baskets, and Bode Bartell, Alex Kortuem, Kyle Connor and Smith each added a basket, but it wasn’t enough, and the Bulldogs, continuing to pound the ball inside, cruised to the victory.
“I don't know that they made too many adjustments other than transition points,” Meyer said. “They started getting some looks underneath with some back door cuts that we were fully prepared for the first half and then sort of got away from it, it got lost a little bit and had to provide some extra help in some areas just because of again legs.”
Meyer didn’t go to his bench as much as he did during the regular season, and that might have contributed to some of the Bulldog points, especially after offensive rebounds.
“I tried to keep the core group in there as much as they could handle. Obviously, that led to some of those instances where they would get tired and not be able to push back.”
Brennan Kortuem finished the night with five threes, three two-point baskets and five free shots.
“Towards the end they knew he was our main scorer, so they put extra pressure on him,” Meyer said. “We didn’t him as open as I would like to.”
Lyons put in five two-point baskets and four freebies for 14 total points. Smith had three baskets for six total points. Alex Kortuem made a three and a two for five total points. Bartell and Connor each chipped in a basket.
The Clippers made six threes and were nine of 19 from the foul line. Lester Prairie put in eight threes and two of nine free throws. They had two players with 27 points. The Clippers shot 33 percent from the floor compared to the Bulldogs’ 44 percent.
The Bulldogs grabbed 18 offensive rebounds and 31 defensive rebounds while the Clippers had a dozen offensive rebounds and 25 defensive rebounds. Each team had 19 turnovers.
Lyons had six rebounds, three assists and two blocks. Brennan Kortuem had three rebounds, two assists and one steal. Bartell had four rebounds, one assist, one steal and one block. Connor had seven rebounds, three assists, three steals and one block. Smith had seven rebounds, three assists, three steals and one block. Alex Kortuem had two rebounds and one steal. Kale Kelley made two steals.
It was the last high school game for Brennan Kortuem, Kelley, Connor and Johnson.
“Those four have been this entire team,” Meyer said. “Our motto is "Together." They have been the definition of together for us. They’re role models for all the other kids on the team. They put in the work. AJ has been putting in work for four years. Obviously, he would have loved to get more playing time. I told him after the game that's the toughest part about being a coach is putting guys on the court because you’d love to play everyone, especially those guys that do put in that much effort. But I hope that those seniors are satisfied with what they achieved over their time here, obviously personal achievements, Brennan had some big ones, but they're all going to be missed."
Meyer said that during the Clippers’ Wisconsin Dells trip last summer, he was stoked about this team, including senior Blake Lyons.
“I was riding high because I was so excited about what this team looked like with Blake on it and being able to always have five confident people on the court. I didn't know how teams were going to stop us. And then I got a little bit sad on the ride home because then I started thinking about the end of the season already, and I knew this day would come. I really didn’t want to say goodbye to those seniors."
But Blake Lyons suffered a football injury that ended his high school sports career.
“I had to say goodbye to Blake early,” Meyer said. “He was a huge part of this team for many years. You always have to ask yourself, what if. What if he would have still been a part of this team, if he wouldn't have gotten injured?”
But Meyer was grateful for the seniors that were able to play.
“They have great character. They're poised and they're going to go far in life. Basketball is just a silly game, so they're going to be guys who are going to be leaders in their communities and that's what I’m most proud of.”
The Clippers end their season with a 10-15 record. Their 7-5 record in the Valley Conference was good for third place behind 10-2 Madelia and 8-4 Mankato Loyola. They lost three games by five or fewer points and made most of their other losses competitive. They drew a solid fan base.
Lester Prairie will go on to take third ranked Cedar Mountain at Sibley East on March 6. In other games around the section, seventh-seeded Sleepy Eye beat 10th-ranked Mankato Loyola 61-50. Second-seeded BOLD beat MCW, the 15 seed, 63-45. BOLD will face Sleepy Eye at Sibley East on March 6.
Ranked 12th, Sleepy Eye St. Mary’s upset Mayer Lutheran, the number five seed, 81-61 while fourth-ranked Madelia beat 13-seeded Nicollet 66-52. Madelia and SESM will square off at St. Peter High School on March 6. Top-ranked Springfield beat 17th-seeded GFW 74-53, and eighth-ranked Atwater-Cosmos Grove beat ninth-seeded New Ulm Cathedral 66-47. Springfield and ACG will compete on the St. Peter High School court on March 6.
Above: Starters Carson Lyons, Kale Kelley, Kyle Connor, Bode Bartell and Brennan Kortuem on defense.
