Mt. Iron-Buhl may be one team the Ely Timberwolves want to avoid in the upcoming Section 7A boys basketball tournament.
While the Wolves have 17 wins and have given top contenders Cherry and Deer River a run for their money, Mt. Iron-Buhl has been one tough nut to crack.
That was apparent again Tuesday, as the visiting Rangers dominated and held the Wolves to a mere 39 points, cruising 68-39 at the Memorial Gymnasium.
Mt. Iron-Buhl’s physical play rattled the Wolves, who were held to their second-lowest point total of the season and committed 24 turnovers - the second-highest total yet this season and behind only 25 against MIB in a January loss.
“I thought we got off to a good start defensively and did enough offensively to hang in the game, but they made a run in the last three minutes of the half that we never really recovered from,” said Ely Head Coach Tom McDonald. “They turned us over 13 times in the first half which led to some easy transition points for them.”
The Rangers led 31-19 at halftime and were never threatened.
“They shot the ball really well in the second half and we had no answer on the offensive end,” said McDonald. “Their half court defense never allowed us to feel comfortable.”
Senior Drew Johnson led the Wolves with 17 points and sophomore Arturo Cameron pulled down nine rebounds.
It was a much easier time for the Wolves on Feb. 12, as they pulled away for a relatively easy 71-14 victory at Chisholm.
“We played well on both ends of the floor and limited their offensive opportunities,” said McDonald. “Chisholm has been a tough place to play for us over the year so it was good to get a win there.”
Johnson led four Wolves in double digits with 21 points and senior Jack Davies was next with 20.
Wyatt Tedrick added 16 points for Ely and Leo McKrahl had 11 points and 15 rebounds to finish with a double- double.
• Ely (17-7) took on South Ridge after deadline and the Wolves close out the regular season this week, first at North Woods Tuesday, followed by a Feb. 27 regular season home finale against Fond du Lac.
“We have been playing pretty well lately but it has been a struggle with MIB both times,” said McDonald. “Hopefully we can continue to stay in games coming up by playing well on the defensive end and it would be nice to shoot better down the stretch here.”
• Playoff action begins the week of March 2 and the Wolves seem in line for home court and either a seven or eight seed.
At the top of the heap in 7A are Cherry (19-5), Deer River (17-4), Barnum (19-4) and MIB (18-4).
After early-round games at home sites, the tournament moves to the Hibbing Memorial Arena with four quarterfinal games March 7.
The semifinals and finals are at Hibbing the following week.
