Stalled in the stretch

A big third-quarter spurt appeared to put the Creston boys on track for a second straight victory, but Red Oak outscored the Panthers 7-2 in the final period to take a 45-40 conference win Monday night.

Coming off Friday’ 55-53 triumph at Denison-Schleswig to improve to 1-8 for the season, the Panthers appeared to have some second half momentum Monday in taking a 38-35 lead. A 14-7 run in the third quarter had erased Red Oak’s 28-24 halftime lead and coach Bryce Schafer liked what he saw from his team.

“We penetrated the arc and got easy drop-offs for makes during that stretch,” Schafer said. “Then, there’s periods of time when fatigue in tight ballgames like this turns us into more of a one-on-one team. We don’t go back to the well that brought us there.”

During that two-point fourth quarter, luck didn’t appear to be on Creston’s side as Ayden Purdum’s drive to the basket resulted in a layup rolling off the rim, and a short jumper by CT Stalker rattled in and out.

With a minute to play, Creston trailed 42-38. Rhett Driskell drove through traffic into the lane for a short-range shot that made it 42-40 with 38 seconds left. As Red Oak worked to advance the ball against Creston’s late fullcourt press, Stalker was called for a foul against Tiger season scoring leader Reese Montgomery.

The 6-5 Tiger junior converted one of two at the line to make it 43-40. On Creston’s ensuing possession, Panther guard Nathan Carroll was called for a “hooking” offensive foul that Schaffer questioned. The turnover occurred with 17 seconds left.

“Nate had his buy beat to the middle with some options off of it,” Schafer said. “I thought it was a (defensive) hip check that we were called for on the other end. Part of our our trouble offensively was the stall that results from some of those fouls, and we didn’t get any free throws ourselves.”

CT Stalker’s steal gave Creston another late possession facing a three-point deficit, but the Panthers missed two would-be tying 3-pointers. A foul after Red Oak’s defensive rebound led to two Dillan Rydberg free throws to make the final margin five at 45-40.

Creston had 17 fouls to seven for Red Oak, which converted 7-of-12 free throws while also outscoring Creston 30-18 on 3-pointers. Driskell sank four of Creston’s six triples on the way to a game-high 18 points.

Carson Roeder made five 3-pointers for Red Oak, including two critical deep shots in the Tigers’ fourth quarter comeback on the way to a team-high 17 points. Montgomery, averaging 19 points for the season, finished with 14 points. No Panther other than Driskell reached double figures. Purdum finished with six points and Jaxson Jondle added five, both in reserve roles.

“Defensively we stopped them four out of six possessions and got no points off of them,” Schafer said. “That’s when we missed the layup and a shot rattled in and out. I was proud of how hard the guys worked to get it turned around in the third quarter. We’re in a position where these guys are not used to playing in tight games at this level, that are there for us to win.”

Friday’s victory

The Panthers did finish strong down the stretch to secure win No. 1 of the season Friday at Denison-Schleswig, 55-53.

Schafer said free throw shooting was critical to gaining the road victory.

“We had up to a seven-point lead in the fourth quarter, but had two really critical turnovers and they ended up tying the game,” Schafer said. “They went up by two with 50 seconds left. Cael Barton hit two free throws to tie it. We got a defensive stop, and had a sideline out of bounds play where Rhett got fouled in the bonus. He made two free throws to go up two and we held them to an airball shot in the final 14 seconds.”

Creston, now 1-9 overall and 1-3 in the Hawkeye Ten, plays at Council Bluffs Thursday against league leader Lewis Central (8-1, 6-0). Red Oak, winner of four of its last five games, improved to 5-6 overall and 3-2 in conference play.

RED OAK (45) — Totals (FG FT PTS) — 14 7-12 45. Carson Roeder 6 0-0 17, Reese Montgomery 4 4-8 14, Mason Gurney 1 3-4 5, AJ Beeson 1 0-0 3, Weston Couse 1 0-0 3, Masen Fisher 1 0-0 3. 3-point goals — 10 (Roeder 5, Montgomery 2, Beeson 1, Couse 1, Fisher 1).

CRESTON (40) — Totals — (FG FT PTS) 17 0-0 40. Rhett Driskell 7 0-0 18, Ayden Purdum 3 0-0 6, Jaxson Jondle 2 0-0 5, CT Stalker 2 0-0 4, Jaxson Schaffer 1 0-0 3, Nathan Carroll 1 0-0 2, Baret Lane 1 0-0 2. 3-point goals — 5 (Driskell 4, Jondle 1, Schaffer 1).