Wildcats win by one

The Wildcats pulled out a narrow regional victory this week as the team bested the Max Cossacks on Thursday.

Center-Stanton quickly surged ahead in the Feb. 2 contest in Max, taking a 43-30 lead by the close of the first half.

It was all Wildcats in the first half, however, quarter three showed signs of life for the Cossacks. The group out-scored C-S 14-12 in this period, setting the stage for a wild fourth quarter of play.

Max’s team kicked itself into overdrive in quarter four, receiving offensive input from five different players–including Talbott’s 9 in this period alone. The Cossacks outscored their opponents 17-6, tying the game and sending it into overtime.

With the scoreboard locked up and both teams exhausted it was anyone’s game for the taking.

Ultimately Center-Stanton would take the win 73-72, earning 10 trips to the free throw line in OT and knocking down eight of them.

Drake-Anamoose

Two days prior, the Wildcats took on Drake- Anamoose in a varsity doubleheader in Center.

Center-Stanton hosted the Raiders Jan. 31 for a game that would again come down to single digits, and again see the visitor come out on top.

The Wildcats made it clear from the start they were going to fight for the game, tallying 17 points in the first quarter and heating up from there.

Down by four at the start of the second, Center- Stanton amped up the offense, racking up 24 points in the quarter to close in on and finally overtake the Raiders.

At the half, the Wildcats led 41-40.

Drake-Anamoose had scored 20 points in the first two-quarters of the game and proved to be consistent after coming back from halftime. The Raiders collected another 20 but failed to change their position as the Wildcats matched the scoring and maintained a one-point lead going into the fourth.

Center-Stanton’s hold on the win slipped in the final quarter as the Raiders stepped up their scoring slightly while the Wildcats slowed. Drake-Anamoose, who scored eight three-pointers over the course of the game, made a final few leaps in the last eight minutes to take back the lead and close the game 82- 72.

Drake-Anamoose

20 40 60 82

Center-Stanton

17 41 61 72

Center-Stanton: Jaret Henke, 29; Hunter Hoffman, 24; Ken Albers, 6; Josh Thies, 5; Jordan Peterson, 4; Seth Hall, 4. Three pointers: Hoffman, 3; Henke, 2; Thies, 1. Field goals: 25. Free throws: 6-10.

Drake-Anamoose: Dallas Brandt, 27; John Bossert, 26; Kyle Volson, 22; Austin Lemer, 3; Wesley Nickelson, 2; George Nickelson, 2. Three-pointers: Brandt, 5; Bossert, 2; Lemur, 1. Field goals: 23. Free throws: 13-19.

On Monday, the Wildcats traveled to Bismarck to take on Shiloh Christian. The Skyhawks, a fellow Region 5 team, would sweep aside Center-Stanton and take an overwhelming 82-36 win.

The Wildcat boys were set to host Standing Rock on Tuesday and Richardton- Taylor on Friday at 7 p.m. On Saturday, they hit the road for an away game in Killdeer before traveling to South Prairie on Monday for a match against the Royals.