OWATONNA – On paper, the Albert Lea High School boys’ basketball team had a sizable advantage.

Wednesday, January 30, 2002

OWATONNA – On paper, the Albert Lea High School boys’ basketball team had a sizable advantage. It narrowed considerably on the court.

A determined Huskies squad kept the Tigers from pulling away but the ALHS boys got away with a 57-50 Big Nine triumph at Owatonna Tuesday night.

&uot;Owatonna has struggled on paper, but they’re really a scrappy team and they’ve got a returning all-state player in Andrew Olson,&uot; said Tigers coach Matt Addington. &uot;It was a good effort by our kids. We still need to step up the defensive intensity, but we did a good job tonight. The kids executed the fundamentals.&uot;

The win pulled the Tigers even at 7-7 overall and 5-5 in the conference while Owatonna fell to 2-13 and 1-8.

Albert Lea led 11-5, 27-25 and 42-37 at the breaks. Missed free throws – the Tigers were 9-for-22 for the night – kept the Tigers from pulling away in the fourth quarter.

Tyler Young and Ben Woodside had a big night for the Tigers. Young totaled 20 points and 12 rebounds. Woodside had 17 points, five steals and four assists while guarding Olson most of the night and helping hold him to 13 points. Jordan Skophammer had nine points and six rebounds.

&uot;Ben did a good job all night,&uot; said Addington. &uot;Tyler and (Skophammer) also came up big.&uot;

The Tigers were 23-for-43 from the floor, 2-for-9 on three-pointers. Owatonna was 5-for-15 on threes and 20-for-53 from the field.

The ALHS boys completed their first regular-season sweep of Owatonna in many years.

The Tigers host Mankato West Thursday.