Strong second-half lifts Comets over Wolverines 57-40 in season-opener

Press Staff Report

DIKE — After an action-packed but offensively sluggish first quarter that had both teams locked at 7, and then a back-and-forth second quarter which resulted in Charles City clinging onto a 2-point halftime lead (22-20) over Dike-New Hartford during Tuesday’s boys basketball season-opener for both teams, the visiting Comets broke the game open while out scoring their hosts 23-10 in the third quarter and never looked back on way to a 57-40 victory.

“Our guys did a nice job of making adjustments at halftime to take away their perimeter looks,” Comet head coach Ben Klapperich said.  “We held them to one 3-point (field goal) in the second half.

“When we moved the ball on the offensive end, we got open looks.”

One of the Comet players cashing in on those open looks was Brennan Schmidt, who led his team with 15 points.

Returning all-conference swingman Chase Low added 13 points, and new addition junior Keenan Wiley scored 12 for the Comets.

“The game is simple when our guys don’t try to do too much,” Klapperich said. “Move the ball, work for open shots, keep control of it.

“I was very pleased with our effort tonight.”

Benton Bixby scored a game-high 17 points for the Wolverines.

Boys Basketball

CHARLES CITY 57, DIKE-NEW HARTFORD 40

Scoring By Quarters

CHARLES CITY 7 15 23 12 — 57

DIKE-NEW HARTFORD 7 13 10 10 — 40

Individual Scoring

CHARLES CITY — Brennan Schmidt 15, Chase Low 13, Keenan Wiley 12, Jeb Wandro 8, Jack Hanson 6, Drew Martin 3.

DIKE-NEW HARTFORD — Benton Bixby 17, Braxten Johnson 11, Colin Meester 6, Devon Lotts 4, Ethan Kirby 2.

RECORDS — Charles City 1-0, Dike-New Hartford 0-1

Comets fall to Lions 69-64 in double OT

CHARLES CITY — In their home-opener against Clear Lake on Thursday, the Comets managed to come back from a 7-point deficit in the fourth quarter to force overtime before getting a point-blank shot to win it at the buzzer of the added period only to eventually lose in double-overtime to the Lions by a score of 69-64.

Keenan Wiley’s stick-back bucket with 55.4 left in regulation put Charles City up 52-51.

Thomas Meyer later made good on a pair of free-throw attempts to tie it at 53 and force the first OT period.

With the score tied at 58 with less than 28 seconds left in the added period, Clear Lake had possession for a chance to win it. But the Comets forced a turnover with Chase Low leading the break and Jack Hanson filling a lane on the wing. Hanson’s contested layup was missed, but Wiley — trailing the play — nearly cleaned up with another stick-back as the buzzer sounded only to have the ball rim out.

The Comets caught a tough break in the second added period when Low was whistled for a loose-ball foul — his disqualifying fifth — after colliding with a Lion player.

Low left the game with a game-high 29 points.

Late in the second OT period, Travaughn Luyobya went 4 of 4 at the free-throw line to finally seal the victory for the Lions.

Wiley scored 11 of his 16 points in the second half and added periods for the Comets (1-1), who will be back in action on Saturday in the latter game of a girls-boys varsity doubleheader against Algona starting at 1 p.m. in Comet Gym.

Cael Stephany had 22 points which included six 3-point field goals to lead the Lions (1-0).

CLEAR LAKE 69,
CHARLES CITY 64 (2 OT)

Scoring by Periods

CL 9 21 12 10 5 11 — 69

CC 13 11 11 18 5 6 — 64

Individual Scoring

CLEAR LAKE — Ben Loge 4, Cael Stephany 22, Thomas Meyer 20, Travaughn Luyobya 12, Titan Schmitt 10, Dylan Litzel 1.

CHARLES CITY — Jack Hanson 5, Kaden Buseman 2, Brennan Schmidt 6, Keenan Wiley 16, Chase Low 29, Jeb Wandro 6.

RECORDS — Charles City 1-1, Clear Lake 1-0