Jaguars whip the Bulldogs (VIDEOS)

The B-B-E Jaguars boys' basketball team put on a defensive clinic to start the second half tonight at Paynesville Area high school. The game's opening minutes were played at a frantic pace, as both teams tried to push the tempo for easier layup shots. The Jaguars continually locked down on defense and denied numerous attempts to drive the ball inside, especially early in the second half.

B-B-E led 40-31 at halftime after maintaining at least a five-point lead through the final 14 minutes of the first half. Paynesville started with early leads of 2-0 and 4-3, but a three-pointer with 16:18 left by Ashton Dingmann at the top of the key put the Jaguars in front for good. A three-pointer by Gannon Walsh made it 11-6, and a baseline left move by Kaden Pieper made it 13-8 with 13:39 left. Paynesville Area would get no closer than five points for the remainder of the game.

Two free throws by Dingmann with 6 minutes to go put the Jaguars up 28-19. Pieper drained two free throws for a 36-23 lead with 2:52 left for the biggest lead of the first half. 

Out of the break, the Jaguars punched down with lockdown defense while scoring 11 unanswered points before the Bulldogs knew what hit them. Will VanBeck's steal and layup with 14:40 left made it 51-31. Gannon Walsh's three-pointer put the Jaguars ahead 59-33 with 12:22 left. The Bulldogs never recovered while struggling through most of the second half against B-B-E's relentless in-your-face defense.

Final score at Paynesville: 81-50, Jaguars win! They are now 9-3 overall and 4-1 in the Central Minnesota Conference. The Bulldogs fall to 9-6 overall and 3-1 in the CMC.

Hot field goal shooting, including an outstanding 45-percent clip on three-pointers, propelled the Jaguars to the big CMC win.

Central MN Conference boys' basketball scores on January 20:
Holdingford 44, Maple Lake 31
Eden Valley-Watkins 80, Atwater-Cosmos-Grove City 57
Kimball Area 73, Royalton 69


Here's a short post-game video clip at Paynesville:


*Here's a video featuring the playing of the National Anthem, the starter introductions, the tip-off and the game's opening minutes:


*Here's a shorter video featuring the final few minutes of the first half of the game:


More to come.

Central MN Conference girls' basketball scores on January 20:
Eden Valley-Watkins 41, Maple Lake 33

Area boys' basketball scores on January 20:
St. Cloud Cathedral 49, Melrose Area 43
Parkers Prairie 54, Rothsay 46
Ashby 57, Brandon-Evansville 40 (Ashby is currently the top-ranked team in Sub-Section 6A-South; our Jaguars are at No. 2)
Hillcrest Lutheran Academy 62, Battle Lake 39
Tracy-Milroy-Balaton 66, MACCRAY 46
Henning 49, Menahga 37
West Central Area 58, Wheaton/Herman-Norcross 53
Lakeview 74, Renville County West 61
Underwood 62, Sebeka 49
Pillager 77, Bertha-Hewitt 61