A win and a loss for Cardinals

It was week of ups and downs for the Garner-Hayfield-Ventura boys basketball team, as they dropped one game and won another.  The Cardinals moved to 3-1 in the Top of Iowa Conference, West Division.

West Hancock 79, GHV 64.

The undefeated West Hancock boys (3-0, 5-0) proved to be too much for GHV on Tuesday, Dec. 8.  The Eagles soared past the Cardinals, 79-64.

“We got off to a terrible start,” said Coach Joe Albertson.  “We were having trouble executing on both ends of the floor and West Hancock was playing well.”

West Hancock had a hot hand in the first quarter, sinking four three-point shots to build a solid 26-15 first quarter lead.  The Eagles didn’t slow down in the second quarter and they sunk four more threes and headed to the locker room with a large 47-29 lead.

Despite a better second half, where the Cardinals were only outscored by three-points, the first half deficit was too much for the Cardinals to overcome and they fell, 79-64.

“We were able to make a little run in the second half, but it was evident we were not ready to play,” said Albertson.

Two players had double-doubles for the night.  Sam Cataldo had 17-points and 14 rebounds and James Betz had 13-points and 15 rebounds.  The pair also had two blocked shots apiece.

Johnathan O’Connor also had a good game with 18-points and three steals.

GHV 67, Belmond-Klemme 21

GHV’s experience and size overpowered Belmond-Klemme on Friday, Dec. 11.  The Cardinals dominated the Broncos, 67-21, in conference action.

GHV had eight points on the board before B-K scored on a three-point shot.  The Cardinals then went on another eight-point run to move to 18-3.  The first quarter ended with GHV up by 15, 20-5.  The buckets continued to fall for the Cardinals, as they took a very comfortable 40-11 lead into the half.

Tight defense held the Broncos scoreless for the first four minutes of the second half.  The bench took over midway through the third quarter.  The subs also played well, allowing the Broncos only three points in the fourth quarter.  The domination ended with the Cardinals picking up a huge 67-21 victory.

“The boys moved the ball, fed the post, attacked the rim, challenged shots and got into the passing lanes,” said Coach Joe Albertson.  “We needed to play well to build our confidence.”

Balanced scoring was provided by James Betz, Sam Cataldo and Nick Joynt.  Betz had 13-points, Cataldo added 12 and Joynt sunk 11-points.

Betz led the team under the boards with seven rebounds, while Cataldo and Ryan Meyers both grabbed six.  Holden Hutcheson had five rebounds.

Payton James and Johnathan O’Connor had three steals apiece, while Betz and Ben Baumgard had two apiece.  Cataldo had two blocked shots.

The team hosts Lake Mills on Friday, Dec. 18.  Game time is 7:30 p.m.