Eastern Adams County's Only Independent Voice Since 1887
Eastern Adams County's Only Independent Voice Since 1887
LRS senior guard Austin Thompson drives to the rim in the Broncos' 64-41 win over the Tekoa-Rosalia Timberwolves on Jan. 21. Thompson finished the game with 13 points, and the Broncos improved their league record to 5-3 on the season.
As the regular season winds down, the Lind-Ritzville/Sprague Broncos have turned their focus to closing out league play strongly and earning as high a seed as possible in the Northeast 2B Conference Tournament.
The slate of games this past week saw mixed results for the boys team, which fell in a spirited performance on the road against undefeated Liberty on Jan. 17 and then rebounded strongly with a win against unpredictable Tekoa-Rosalia at home on Jan. 21.
Early foul trouble plagued the Broncos against the Lancers last Friday, with junior Drew Kelly picking up two fouls early in the first quarter and his third foul soon after re-entering into the game in the second quarter. With Kelly able to play just a few minutes in the opening half, head coach Dustan Arlt said the team sorely missed his contributions on both offense and defense, which contributed to the team being outscored 41-29 in the first two quarters.
LRS hung around though, and Arlt was proud of his team for continuing to fight and not allow the game to turn into a 25 or 30-point blowout, ultimately losing 79-63. Arlt said that Liberty's big men just had too much success inside the paint on offense.
On a positive note, the Broncos finished 15-20 from the free throw line and made six three-pointers. The senior guard duo of Austin Thompson and Spencer Gering led LRS offensively, finishing with 14 and 12 points, respectively. Arlt was happy how his team executed on offense against the Lancers, the No. 1 team in the WIAA's RPI rankings in 2B.
It was Gering and Thompson who paced the Broncos in the team's 64-41 home win against Tekoa-Rosalia on Tuesday, finishing with 17 and 13 points, respectively. Of Gering's 17 points, 15 came from beyond the arc, sinking five three-pointers.
LRS outscored Tekoa-Rosalia in all four quarters, including 34-21 in the third and fourth quarters combined to pull away and win comfortably. By holding the Timberwolves to 41 points, LRS opponents have scored more than 50 points in just two of the previous 10 games.
The Broncos, 5-3 in league play and 10-5 overall on the season, now set their sights on a long road trip to Asotin to take on the Panthers (2-5 in league, 4-11 overall) in a league tilt this Saturday, Jan. 25. The teams met in Ritzville earlier this season on Jan. 3, with the Broncos winning 67-49. Tip-off is scheduled for 6 p.m.
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