By Brayden Dirks
On Friday, February 4th, the Royals played the Gehlen Catholic Jays in Marcus. For MMCRU, it was senior night in which the seniors from archery, bowling, basketball cheer, girls basketball, and boys basketball were honored. The two boys basketball players that were honored were Preston Astidias and Brayden Dirks, both of whom started for the Royals that night. The Royals looked to end their three game losing streak and come away with a win on senior night.
Both teams played very well in the first half, and at halftime the score was 28-25 with the Royals in the lead. However, the Jays outscored them 16-7 in the fourth and won 60-53. Junior Derek Goth led MMCRU in points with 11. Sophomore Mitchell Schnepf had 8 points, 10 rebounds, and 4 assists. Sophomores Kyler Bork and Jonah Petersen both had 7 points. The honored seniors of the night, Astidias and Dirks, had 5 and 3 points, respectively.
Coach Cam Kuchel was proud of the boys’ performance despite the loss, “Growth was apparent after our 7 point loss to Gehlen Catholic on Friday. We lost to them by 36 in the first meeting. Our record isn’t flashy but we have had tremendous growth all year long. Proud of our effort.”
On Monday, February 6th, the Royals had their final regular season home game against the GTRA Titans. The Titans had a record of 14-5 heading into this game, and have a very high-scoring offense. MMCRU looked to move to 8-11 with a win and end their losing streak, however, the Titans proved to be too much.
The Titans started off well with several three pointers in the first, but the Royals were able to hold on. MMCRU had a three point lead heading into the fourth quarter. However, the Royals had a few costly turnovers that led to fastbreak layups, and the Titans won 63-57. MMCRU extended their losing streak to five games. Derek Goth was once again the highest scorer for the Royals with 20. Kyler Bork was second with 13 points. Preston Astidias led the way in assists for the Royals with 6, and Mitchell Schnepf led the way in rebounds with 9.
Coach Cam Kuchel gave his remarks on the game, “Another hard-nosed contested game against a strong GTRA team. Our young squad needs to learn to finish as we enter both Gehlen and GTRA with a lead at some point in the 4th quarter. Have to take care of the basketball.”
The Royals came back and played the next night in Orange City against the Unity Christian Knights. This game started off slow for both teams as the first quarter ended with an 8-4 score in favor of the Knights. Although MMCRU played solid first half defense, their offense struggled. The score at halftime was 25-9 with the Knights in the lead. The Royals were able to get an offensive spark coming out of the half with Kyler Bork making four three pointers. However, Unity Christian’s size and rebounding proved to be the difference maker, and prevented a comeback. The Royals fell to a 7-13 record with the Knights win. The final score was 56-32. Kyler Bork was the only double-digit scorer for MMCRU with 14. Michael Peterson and Mitchell Schnepf both had 6 rebounds, which was a team high.
MMCRU coaches reflected on the night, “Cold shooting led to a lopsided matchup with Unity Christian.” Only scoring 9 points in the first half is difficult to overcome in any matchup – let alone against Unity. I commend our effort as we cut it to 12 late in the 3rd quarter and never quit fighting.” The Royals will begin their postseason Monday, February 14th, against George-Little Rock. For state purposes, this game will be held at South O’Brien High School. If the Royals happen to win that game, they’ll move on to the second round to play either South O’Brien or Harris-Lake Park. The Royals would love your support as they head into the postseason!