Tartan sinks Willmar, 62-51
MARSHALL -- The Willmar Cardinals are 1-2 after falling to highly-rated Tartan 62-51 at the Breakdown Tip-off Classic at Marshall High School on Friday.
Both Willmar losses are to Class AAAA schools. It was the opener for the No. 6-ranked Titans of Oakdale.
"We've never seen defensive pressure like that," said coach Steve Grove. "It's hard to prepare for; they're so good on the ball. They had more team speed. We played hard but got outhustled. They are a very fine team."
Titan senior guard Marc Sonnen led all scorers with 23 points.
Jordan Smith was the scoring leader for Willmar with 17 points, 13 coming in the first half.
Willmar got off to a good start, leading 10-5. But the Titans ran off nine straight points for a 14-10 lead which they would not relinquish.
The Tartans would extend a seven-point halftime lead to as much as 20 points in the second half, when Willmar made a nice run to shave the final margin to nine.
Willmar will play its fourth straight road game on Tuesday night against Section 2AAA rival New Ulm.
The Titans, who have 11 consecutive seasons of at least 20 wins, hold the state record for consecutive state tournament appearances with eight (1998-2005).
Tartan 62, Willmar 51
Tartan (0-1) 33 29 -- 62
Willmar (1-2) 26 25 -- 51
TARTAN - 20-40 FG (5-12 3-pt); 17-25 FT; 17 rebounds; 19 fouls ... Scoring: Marc Sonnen 23, Troy Klingsporn 13, Manani Beavers 6, Chuck Buchmayer 2, Derek Peterson 5, 5, Peter Wensman 2, Max Ryan 5, Robbie Mitchell 2. ... 3-point shots: Klingsporn 3, Sonnen 1, Peterson 1 ... Rebound leaders: not available
WILLMAR - 23-35 FG (6-11 3-pt); 11-18 FT; 16 rebounds; 19 fouls ... Scoring: Jim Neis 3, Nathan Streed 10, Alec Saunders 8, Taylor Filipek 10, Jordan Smith 17, Brian Reeves 3 ... 3-point shots: Smith 2, Saunders 2, T. Filipek 2 ... Rebound leaders: Smith 6, Filipek 4 ... Assist leaders: Saunders 3, Filipek 3 ... Steal leaders: Saunders 2