Gallery • 8 Photos

Thomas Chen

CAN’T GET PAST ME. Captain Mikkel Rawdon closely guards a Wildcat player, looking to prevent his offensive play.

It was a dark and cold winter night, but inside the Spartan gym, there was a different world. It was a serious game with balls and bodies flying across the court. Last Thursday, boys basketball took on the Chisago Lakes Wildcats in a back-and-forth, aggressive faceoff. During the game, neither team achieved more than a 15-point lead. After 36 minutes of close gameplay, the ecstatic Wildcats took the win with a 93-99 score, while the Spartans took defeat with disappointment but also with sportsmanship.
Senior Leo Benson said, “They’re a great team and we battled really hard. It was tough that we couldn’t come up with a win, but it was a fun game to play and it was fun to be at home with a good crowd.”
As the first 18-minute half was about to start, parents, siblings and friends sat on the small, clustered bleachers, eager to watch the game unfold. The horn went off, the ball flew into the air, and the fun began with a bang.
The match was fast-paced from the start. Immediately, captain Tysen Hayes took hold of the ball and was flying down the court. It felt like the small gym could barely contain the athletes’ energy. They had to make shots quickly with the shot timer at 35 seconds. Otherwise, they would face a penalty. No one was secure, as both sides’ strong defense ensured more blocks and turnovers than successful shots.
Spartan captain Ethan Carter made many layups, scoring a decent chunk of the points. Around halfway through, he scored one of the few three-pointers of the half, and the Spartan fans went wild. Sophomore Ezra Cunningham also made impressive offensive plays, often finding himself shooting at the hoop, and captain Mikkel Rawdon collected point after point from free throws. Nonetheless, the Wildcats were no easy opponents and matched the Spartans point to point. The half ended 48-40 with a close Spartan lead.
After the 10-minute halftime, the players stepped back onto the court with renewed determination. “Coach Keto brought a lot of intensity in the locker room at halftime, and I felt like it was a good way to bounce back,” Carter said.
However, instantly, the Wildcats showed a surge of spirit, quickly making up ground and eventually overtaking the lead. It seemed the Spartans had run out of gas, weakening their defense. Combined with the multiple three-pointers from the Wildcats, this caused a significant margin to develop, with the Spartans lagging behind. “We had the lead for a decent amount of time and it just kind of slipped away,” said Benson.

The Spartans decided to step it up once they neared the half’s halfway point. Carter continued to play strongly and aggressively. On one occasion, he hit his head on the safety mats after a bold leap on defense. Hayes often assisted him, and though the Wildcats’ strong defense repeatedly blocked Carter’s shots, the duo of the two captains allowed the Spartans to close the gap as both teams neared the 60 and 70-point threshold. Senior Leo Benson, who subbed in relatively late in the game, began to fill defensive holes, closely guarding key Wildcat players. With the final minutes remaining, the Spartans had fought their way back up and were just points from the Wildcats.
Both teams began to get desperate, grasping at any chance to gain a secure lead. Bodies piled on top of each other. Athletes leaped, lunged and reached for the ball, swearing and shouting. The Wildcats’ coach was yelling at the top of his lungs, and the audience was on the edge of their seats. In the end, after some wild last-ditch efforts, the game ended in a score of 93-99, with the Spartans taking defeat. “We need to work on closing out the game,” Benson said.
The faces of Spartans were streaked with disappointment, but the sulking feeling was short-lived. Though it was an intense match, there was no bad blood. Wildcat and Spartan players and family soon found themselves socializing and having fun. Many athletes, such as Carter, Benson and Hayes, stuck around with smiles across their faces.
“We’re gonna move on by coming out with a win on Thursday next week. And again, Coach Keto is going to pick us up really well in the locker room. We’re just going to keep a lot of energy moving forward,” Carter said.
The Spartans will look to take this win against Providence on Thursday at 7:00 p.m. at home.