EMS boys rally to beat Junction City
By The Emporia Gazette (Contact)
Originally published 02:42 p.m., January 24, 2008
Updated 02:42 p.m., January 24, 2008
After a loss to Washburn Rural last Saturday in the championship game of Rural’s home tournament, the Emporia Middle School “A” boys basketball team went back on the road to take on Junction City on Tuesday night.
EMS was able to pull out a 32-28 victory in a hard-fought and physical basketball game.
At the end of the first quarter, the game was tied at 6, with Collin Thomsen scoring four points in the period.
In the second quarter, Junction City got hot, hitting three 3-pointers and a pair of long jumpers to help build itself a 21-15 halftime lead. “Our offense continued to be very shaky in the second quarter,” EMS coach Wade Redeker said. “Instead of running our offenses and slowly trying to pick their defense apart, we became impatient, hurried, and turned the ball over.”
EMS turned things around in the second half, however, switching looks defensively while getting the ball in the paint offensively to outscore Junction City 17-8 after the break to take the four-point victory.
“I was proud of how the kids handled the tough and physical play,” Redeker said. “They focused and stepped it up late in the game when they needed to.”
The victory pushed EMS’s record to 6-1.
The EMS “B” had a rough go of things, falling to Junction City, 35-12.