Bitter Sweet Time for Eagles

12-10-2013 Keota 68, Belle Plaine 52

12-13-2013 Keota 80, English Valleys 43

12-14-2013 Keota 68, WACO 40

 

Although the Keota boys’ basketball team notched five straight wins in the last two weeks, enthusiasm surrounding the team was tempered with the news of an injured player. Nate Owen, the team’s third-leading scorer (16 p.p.g.) and second-leading rebounder (7 r.p.g.) got some bad news on his nabbing knee injury. A torn meniscus and surgery on it will keep Owen out at least until mid-January. Owen scored 14 points in Keota’s 68-52 win at Belle Plaine on Tuesday and 17 at WACO, while sitting out the EV game in between.

 

Both Luke Lyle and Kolton Greiner went off at Belle Plaine; they each scored 22 points and drained four 3-pointers. Every bit of their scoring was needed in this one, as Belle Plaine took a five-point lead into the second quarter. The Eagles cut into the lead in the second quarter to trail 35-34 at the half. A defensive showcase coupled with excellent offense made for a huge third quarter for the Eagles. By out-scoring Belle Plaine 20-6 in the third quarter, Keota held a double-digit lead for the remainder of the game. The defensive play of Derek Berg was a key reason for Keota’s big second half. Berg had five steals on the night, while adding six points and eight rebounds.

 

The full story is available in this week's News-Review.