Blackout beauty — Harlan edges No. 7 Panthers

After Creston vaulted into the No. 7 spot in the first AP poll of the basketball season, the stage was set for another classic showdown with Hawkeye 10 rival Harlan.

The Panthers found themselves on the wrong end of the dramatic finish, falling 59-57 to the Cyclones here Tuesday night.

With 1:28 remaining in the fourth quarter, play was halted for an emergency medical situation involving a Creston fan. Both teams were sent to the locker rooms while medical staff and volunteer firefighters attended to the situation.

“The game, you want to win, Creston wants to win, but ultimately that was the most important thing,” Osborn said.

Both teams were given a five minute warm up before restarting the game.

“We were going to go Carolina and we are going to shoot free throws and layups,” Harlan coach Mitch Osborn said. “We had a layup there, (Alex) Nielsen comes out of nowhere and blocks it.”

After the block, Nielsen sealed off a defender in the post and dropped in a bucket to cut Harlan’s lead, 55-54.

Creston senior Jay Wolfe tied the game 57-57 with about 12 seconds remaining, netting a deep 3-point over man-to-man coverage.

“Then we are up three, we went man so they wouldn’t get a three to tie it, and then he hits that bomb,” Osborn said.

Creston head coach Brett Watson said they discussed having the right mentality to finish the game during the break in play late in the fourth quarter.

“Winners need to have the mentality that they always believe ... even though we are down three with a minute and a half to go, that we still had a chance in this ballgame,” Watson said.

Harlan sophomore point guard Caleb Rasmussen muscled his way into the lane and forced Christian Groumoutis to commit a shooting foul. Rasmussen converted at the line to give the Cyclones the two-point advantage.

Rasmussen finished with a team-high 17 points.

The Panthers made a quick outlet to Wolfe, who raced down the floor with less than four seconds remaining. As he crossed half court, the ball slipped away before Wolfe could fire a shot and time expired.

“We had the ball in our best player’s hand and it just fell out of his hands,” Watson said.

Hot start

Sam Hartsock was a perfect three-for-three from behind the arc to open the contest, helping the Panthers build a 14-10 lead to end the first quarter.

“We started out in junk defense,” Osborn said. “We cannot guard Wolfe man to man, one on one. He is just a mismatch for us.”

Osborn hoped the Cyclones (3-1, 2-1) could cover the perimeter, but the Panthers continued to find success shooting from outside.

It was Groumoutis’ turn, hitting back-to-back 3-point baskets with 5:15 remaining in the second quarter.

“I told our kids threes will not beat us,” Osborn said. “And if we can limit Jay Wolfe’s touches as much as possible.”

Wolfe was able to create some space driving to the basket for a bucket followed by a 3-pointer to build Creston’s largest lead, 22-15.

He finished the night with a double-double, 18 points and 13 rebounds.

Harlan switched to a 2-3 zone, clogging up the lane and killing the Panthers’ rhythm.

“They kept us out of the paint,” Watson said. “We fell in love with the 3-point shot and it didn’t always fall. We got a little stagnant with our offense, too.”

Harlan clawed back in the final two minutes of the half, trailing the Panthers 27-23 at the half.

Second half

The Cyclones took the lead quickly to start the second half, leading 32-30 halfway through the third quarter.

“We got a good run right at the beginning of the third quarter that got us a little lead,” Osborn said.

The Panthers kept it close, retaking the lead to start the fourth quarter. Cooper McDermott came off the bench and provided a spark for the Panther offense. He pulled down an offense board and was fouled on the put back.

McDermott’s free throws put the Panthers up 43-40.

Harlan’s Ethan Knudsen responded with five unanswered points to help build the Cyclone’s lead late in the fourth quarter.

Osborn said their 16-for-19 performance at the free throw line helped seal their victory down the strech.

“It is only a failure if we don’t learn from this,” Watson said. “It is still early on in the year, so if we don’t learn from this it is a failure, but if we do, we can take some good things from it.”

Creston (5-1, 4-1) is back in conference action Friday night at Kuemper Catholic in Carroll. Tipoff is scheduled for approximately 7:30 p.m.

HARLAN (59) — Caleb Rasmussen 5 5-5 17, Kyle Juhl 5 2-2 14, Ethan Knudsen 3 2-2 9, Will Lansman 3 2-5 8, Luke Hall 3 1-1 7, Garret Esser 0 2-2, 2, Thomas Fink 0 2-2 2. Totals — 19 16-19 59. 3-point goals — 5 (Rasmussen 2, Juhl 2, Knudsen 1). Team fouls — 10. Fouled out — None.

CRESTON (57) — Jay Wolfe 7 1-1 18, Christian Groumoutis 3 1-2 10, Sam Hartsock 3 0-0 9, McClain Haines 3 0-0 8, Alex Nielsen 3 1-2 7, Cooper McDermott 1 2-2 5. Totals — 20 5-7 57. 3-point goals — 12 (Wolfe 3, Groumoutis 3, Hartsock 3, Haines 2, McDermott 1). FG shooting — 20-51 (39 percent). Rebounds — 29 (Wolfe 12, Nielsen 6, Groumoutis 5). Assists — 16 (Haines 6, Groumoutis 3, Nielsen 3). Steals — 3. Blocked shots — 2. Team fouls — 17. Fouled out — None.

Harlan — 10 23 40 59

Creston — 14 27 38 57

JUNIOR VARSITY

Kyle Somers and Ian Murris finished in double figures with 14 and 13 respectively, but it wasn’t enough for the Panther JV squad to pull off the victor over Harlan here Tuesday night.

The Panthers were not able to overcome the Cyclones 42-27 lead at halftime, falling to Harlan 81-53.

Creston sank seven 3-pointers in the contest, led by Somers with four.

Creston (53) — Kyle Somers 14, Ian Morris 13, Brenden McDowell 7, Cody Crawford 7, Seth Thompson 6, Quinton Scadden 4, Deaven Reece 2. 3-point goals — Somers 4, McDowell 1, Thompson 1, Crawford 1. Free throws — 8-12. Halftime score — Creston 27, Harlan 42.

Harlan (81)

FRESHMEN

Stats from the Creston freshman game were not available at press time.