WILLMAR -- The Willmar Cardinals knocked the Breckenridge Cowboys out of the saddle with a 19-2 run spanning halftime and went on to post an 85-55 victory in the season opener for both teams on Friday night.
It was the first meeting ever of the two school in basketball, but the Class AA Cowboys seemed quite at home for the first 17 minutes of the game.
With nifty passing and good long-range shooting, they led 29-26 with 2:45 left in the half.
That's when Willmar exploded. Center Tom Boike grabbed a rebound and then blocked a shot, each leading to a fast-break basket, first by Matt Seehusen and then Cory Hanson. A Seehusen bucket at the buzzer made it 40-31 at intermission.
Seehusen, who finished with 14 points, hit again to start the half and Hanson drained a trey to build the lead to 45-31. The Cowboys, considered a contender in the Heart O' Lakes, were left in the dust.
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"Our point guard (Casey Lipp) got in foul trouble and that's when we started to have trouble," said Alex Jenson, who led the visitors with 14 points. "We feel we can compete with them, but (Willmar) does have a lot of balance."
Willmar weapons were numerous. Senior guard Kyle Townswick, a 20 point scorer as a junior, opened his fourth varsity campaign with 19 points.
Hanson finished with 15 points and Boike, off the bench, finished with 11. Casey Sussenguth looked like his older brother, Sam, now at North Dakota State, in the second half when he struck for eight points in a short span.
"We were a little unsure of ourselves to start the game," said coach Steve Grove, "but in the second half we were able to shut them down."
The 85 points was the most Willmar has scored in an opener since a 102-45 win at New Ulm to open the 2000-01 season.
Willmar 85, Breckenridge 55
Breckenridge (0-1) 31 24 -- 55
Willmar (1-0) 40 45 -- 85
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BRECKENRIDGE - 13-39 FG (5-9 3 pt); 14-24 FT; 17 rebounds; 16 fouls ... Scoring: Casey Lipp 4-6 0-0 8, Luke Snyder 1-2 0-0 3, Justin Deal 2-2 0-3 6, Bryan Jacklitch 1-3 2-3 4, Jamie Jacklitch 7-14 1-2 17, Alex Jenseon 3-67 6-6 12, Nik Conzemious 0-4 1-4 1, Jack Allen 0-1 1-2 1, Kyle Longie 0-1 3-4 3 ... 3-point shots: Snyder 1-1, Deal 2-2, J. Jacklitch 3-5... Rebound leaders: Lipp 4, Conzemius 6 ... Assist leader: Lipp 3 ... Steal leader: Lipp 2
WILLMAR - 34-47 FG (6-13 3 pt); 11-15 FT; 32 rebounds; 15 fouls ... Scoring: Isaiah Streed 1-1 0-0 2, Kyle Townswick 4-6 9-10 19, Matt Seehusen 7-9 0-0 14, Jarod Hennen 1-3 0-0 2, Cory Hanson 6-7 1-2 15, Ben Lippert 0-1 0-0 0, Taylor Filipek 1-1 0-0 3, Mike Dunham 2-3 0-0 5, Jordan Smith 1-2 0-0 2, Casey Sussenguth 4-6 0-0 8, Ryan DeGree 1-2 0-0 2, Ryan Hagemeyer 1-3 0-0 2, Tom Boike 5-5 1-2 11 ... 3-point shots: Townswick 2-3, Hanson 2-3, Filipek 1-1, Dunham 1-2 ... Rebound leaders: Boike 5, Townswick 4, Hagemeyer 4 ... Assist leaders: Townwick 8, Hanson 5, Dunham 4 ... Steal leaders: Seehusen 2, Zack Coquyt 2, Hennen 2, Hanson 2, Dunham 2, Hagemeyer 2 ... Blocks: Hagemeyer 2, Boike 2
