Slow starting Jackets fall to Trojans

Offense was at a premium when the Perham Yellowjackets and the Barnesville Trojans squared off on Thursday evening in Barnesville, Minn. The Trojans had just enough, earning a 47-44 victory over the Yellowjackets in boys basketball. “I was really disappointed in our mental preparation to start the game. We were lackadaisical on every 50/50 ball. They went and got it, and we didn’t get it,” Perham Head Coach Dave Cresap said. “It showed. We were just two steps behind on every play. I thought our preparation wasn’t very good.” Fortunately for the Yellowjackets, they were only down eight after a half of play. The Yellowjackets fought and clawed their way back into the contest in the second half, and had a chance to tie the game at the buzzer. “I thought the kids battled through that in the second half. We played with a lot of passion and a lot of energy. We hit a few shots, and got back into the game,” Cresap said. “At the end of the game, we made some mental mistakes that we usually take care of, but we didn’t and ended up losing the game.”
Jaden Anderson led the way for the Yellowjackets. He finished with 16 points. Anderson scored nine of the team’s 13 first half points. Jenson Beachy finished the game with 11 points. Ben Sauve and Ethan Ishaug paced the Trojans, each finishing with 12 points. Sauve recorded eight of his 12 points from the free throw line. Both teams were stingy on the defensive end; ultimately it was first half turnovers that hurt the Yellowjackets. Perham turned the ball over 10 times in the opening half. “You get 10 turnovers in the first half and two in the second, you know where your mental preparation is,” Cresap said. “Give Barnesville credit, they are a good team. We gave them some things that we usually don’t give. Our defense, for the most part, was pretty solid all night, giving up 47. They were doing some things defensively that are hard for our kids when we don’t have a big player inside that can post up. Give them credit too, but we have to be ready to play with passion, especially on the road.” Barnesville slowly built up a 10-point lead, which was trimmed by two at the buzzer on a lay-up from Beachy. Late in the second half, Anderson and Zack Tellinghuisen hit 3-pointers, cutting the Barnesville lead to two, 41-39. Anderson hit two free-throws, sandwiched between free throw makes from Ben Sauve and Graham Sauve, stretching it to four, 45-41. Sam Muer followed with an aggressive drive, hitting the basket and drawing the foul for the 3-point play. With the Yellowjackets trailing by one, Ben Sauve hit the first of two free throws. The Trojans grabbed the rebound on the miss, sending Graham Sauve to the line. Sauve hit one of two, making it a three-point game. Perham’s last second 3-point attempt from Beachy was contested, and fell short at the buzzer. The Yellowjackets will have little time to dwell on this game. The Yellowjackets host Pelican Rapids at 8 p.m. on Friday. “It’s going to show some character in our guys if we rebound, bounce back and show that we are a champion. I think this team can be a champion,” Cresap said. “I think we can get there-be in that section final and have some things happen. They have to bounce back tomorrow night, and be ready to go because Pelican Rapids is going to be hungry for a win.” The Yellowjackets are 8-9 overall on the season. Perham 13-31-44 Barnesville 21-26-47 Perham-Jenson Beachy 11, Christian Weis 3, Jaden Anderson 16, Zack Tellinghuisen 7, Andrew Johnson 2, Sam Muer 5 3-point goals-Beachy 2, Weis, Anderson 4, Tellinghuisen Barnesville- Graham Sauve 5, Jack Lien 4, Jared Affield 4, Ben Sauve 12, Nick Randklev 10, Ethan Ishaug 12 3-point goals-Randklev 2, Ishaug Offense was at a premium when the Perham Yellowjackets and the Barnesville Trojans squared off on Thursday evening in Barnesville, Minn. The Trojans had just enough, earning a 47-44 victory over the Yellowjackets in boys basketball. “I was really disappointed in our mental preparation to start the game. We were lackadaisical on every 50/50 ball. They went and got it, and we didn’t get it,” Perham Head Coach Dave Cresap said. “It showed. We were just two steps behind on every play. I thought our preparation wasn’t very good.”Fortunately for the Yellowjackets, they were only down eight after a half of play. The Yellowjackets fought and clawed their way back into the contest in the second half, and had a chance to tie the game at the buzzer. “I thought the kids battled through that in the second half. We played with a lot of passion and a lot of energy. We hit a few shots, and got back into the game,” Cresap said. “At the end of the game, we made some mental mistakes that we usually take care of, but we didn’t and ended up losing the game.”
Jaden Anderson led the way for the Yellowjackets. He finished with 16 points. Anderson scored nine of the team’s 13 first half points. Jenson Beachy finished the game with 11 points. Ben Sauve and Ethan Ishaug paced the Trojans, each finishing with 12 points. Sauve recorded eight of his 12 points from the free throw line. Both teams were stingy on the defensive end; ultimately it was first half turnovers that hurt the Yellowjackets. Perham turned the ball over 10 times in the opening half. “You get 10 turnovers in the first half and two in the second, you know where your mental preparation is,” Cresap said. “Give Barnesville credit, they are a good team. We gave them some things that we usually don’t give. Our defense, for the most part, was pretty solid all night, giving up 47. They were doing some things defensively that are hard for our kids when we don’t have a big player inside that can post up. Give them credit too, but we have to be ready to play with passion, especially on the road.”Barnesville slowly built up a 10-point lead, which was trimmed by two at the buzzer on a lay-up from Beachy. Late in the second half, Anderson and Zack Tellinghuisen hit 3-pointers, cutting the Barnesville lead to two, 41-39. Anderson hit two free-throws, sandwiched between free throw makes from Ben Sauve and Graham Sauve, stretching it to four, 45-41. Sam Muer followed with an aggressive drive, hitting the basket and drawing the foul for the 3-point play. With the Yellowjackets trailing by one, Ben Sauve hit the first of two free throws. The Trojans grabbed the rebound on the miss, sending Graham Sauve to the line. Sauve hit one of two, making it a three-point game. Perham’s last second 3-point attempt from Beachy was contested, and fell short at the buzzer. The Yellowjackets will have little time to dwell on this game. The Yellowjackets host Pelican Rapids at 8 p.m. on Friday. “It’s going to show some character in our guys if we rebound, bounce back and show that we are a champion. I think this team can be a champion,” Cresap said. “I think we can get there-be in that section final and have some things happen. They have to bounce back tomorrow night, and be ready to go because Pelican Rapids is going to be hungry for a win.”The Yellowjackets are 8-9 overall on the season.Perham 13-31-44Barnesville 21-26-47Perham-Jenson Beachy 11, Christian Weis 3, Jaden Anderson 16, Zack Tellinghuisen 7, Andrew Johnson 2, Sam Muer 53-point goals-Beachy 2, Weis, Anderson 4, TellinghuisenBarnesville- Graham Sauve 5, Jack Lien 4, Jared Affield 4, Ben Sauve 12, Nick Randklev 10, Ethan Ishaug 123-point goals-Randklev 2, Ishaug