BOYS BASKETBALL: Against Eagles, boys record their first win of season

The Nodaway Valley/OM boys basketball squad knew that if they committed themselves to hard work and the process laid before them, they’d be rewarded with a win somewhere along the way.

Friday night, against an East Union team also at the bottom of the Pride of Iowa Conference standings, the Wolverines did many things well en route to a 58-43 victory — their first win of the season.

While NV/OM led 17-10 after the first quarter, the initial lead the Wolverines earned was more dramatic, as they asserted themselves early in the game, able to run the floor and shoot layups at ease.

“Basketball’s a game of runs. It’s good to get out early because it builds confidence,” said senior Dawson Nelson, who finished with 28 points that were coupled with 16 coming from Paul Berg. “It was good to see we can get that lead in a game and keep that lead. That first one is huge.”

Senior Jake Mangels said weathering storms was crucial for the team, as East Union came back to within eight points a couple of times during the game.

“We had to play good defense, box out and make the right decisions so we don’t turn it over,” Mangels said. “This is definitely going to help us out. We know we can beat teams and know we can do a lot better, so we have to use it.”

Coming into the game, the Wolverines had a feeling they could get the win.

“We came in with a lot of energy because we knew we could beat this team,” Berg said. “We pulled it out in the end.”

Other games in the last week for the boys were a 64-44 loss to the Lenox Tigers on Tuesday night, then a 84-45 loss to the Earlham Cardinals on Saturday. This Monday, the Wolverines lost 75-43 to Southwest Valley at home.

Against the Tigers, Nelson led the way with 27 points while senior Jacob Mangels was leading rebounder with seven. Gabe Funk led Lenox with 30 points as the Wolverines hung with Lenox well into the second quarter. The Tigers distanced themselves for a 34-22 halftime lead, then had the lead up to 20 points not long into the third quarter.

Earlham was led with 15 points each from Blake Reynolds, Jeret Peterson and Kayl Gulling. The Cardinals led 24-13 at the end of the first quarter and by a 56-26 spread at half.

Mangels said he hopes the East Union win sticks with the team for awhile.

“This is definitely going to help us out,” Mangels added. “We know we can beat teams and know we can do a lot better, so we have to use it.”

NV/OM embarked on a busy week Monday when they first faced a home game with Southwest Valley. Tuesday, they were scheduled to travel to Mount Ayr. Friday is a home game with Central Decatur and Saturday is a trip to Southeast Warren. Monday’s game and Saturday’s game are rescheduled dates from recent snow storms.

“Overall, this was probably one of the best team games we’ve played from top to bottom, beginning to end. We had to fight through adversity and got in early foul trouble. Guys had to play quality minutes with foul trouble and we got off to an early start, which hasn’t happened. They went on some runs and we were able to respond, and that hasn’t happened this year,” NV/OM head coach Thad Tussey said after beating East Union. “There were still a lot of things that didn’t go our way, but that’s basketball and that’s life. The most important play is the next play. We were in a position, going into the fourth quarter, to win the game. That’s what the first three quarters are for.”