Three nights earlier, the Albert Lea High School boys’ basketball team was beaten by a team that literally could not miss in the third quarter.

Saturday, February 23, 2002

Three nights earlier, the Albert Lea High School boys’ basketball team was beaten by a team that literally could not miss in the third quarter.

The Winona Winhawks weren’t quite as hot as the Austin Packers. But their third quarter was pivotal as the Tigers lost 77-65 Friday night in a Big Nine game at ALHS.

&uot;We matched up well,&uot; said Tigers coach Matt Addington, whose squad fell to 8-9 in the conference and 10-11 overall. &uot;It was just one of those things, we couldn’t sustain the stretches and we couldn’t overcome theirs. We just didn’t get over the hump.&uot;

The Winhawks, who improved to 9-8 in the Big Nine and 13-8 overall, were 29-for-46 overall from the field, 4-for-9 on three-point attempts, and 16-for-19 at the free-throw line.

&uot;They shoot 25-for-37 from the field, that’s pretty good,&uot; said Addington.

On Tuesday, Austin was 9-for-9 from the floor and 5-for-5 at the line while outscoring the Tigers 26-0 over the final 7:45 of the third quarter. On Friday, the Winhawks started the second half 7-for-9 and were shooting 70 percent at that point, stretching a 35-32 halftime lead to 54-45 after three quarters.

&uot;They just hit shots,&uot; said Addington.

The Tigers, meanwhile, didn’t get to the free-throw line as much as Addington would like, going 6-for-9. They were 16-for-32 on two-point field goals and 9-for-25 on threes. They outrebounded Winona 29-19. Both teams had 12 turnovers.

Ben Woodside, Josh Kasper and Jordan Skophammer scored 13 points apiece for the Tigers. Kasper also had 10 assists, Skophammer 10 rebounds. Tyler Young totaled eight points and nine rebounds. Corey Bowman added nine points, Tim Benesch four, Kyle Schrad three and Jay Link two.

David Dreas, a 5-foot-11 sophomore who was held to four points in the teams’ earlier game at Winona, led the Winhawks with 22 points.

The Tigers finish the regular season at home this Friday against Rochester Century. They open section tournament play the following week.