The Eureka Tornadoes boys basketball team opened play at the War on 54 Tournament in Iola on Tuesday of last week, with a challenging stretch of games, facing a tough slate of opponents and battling through shooting woes and momentum-shifting quarters. Despite consistent effort and flashes of strong play, Eureka struggled to find offensive rhythm at key moments, particularly in the third quarter of each contest, finishing the tournament with three hardfought losses that provided valuable experience heading into a busy week ahead.
Against Cherryvale
The Eureka Tornadoes lost to the Cherryvale Chargers Tuesday, Feb. 20 in Iola,37-52, in the opening round. Eureka played well but shot a miserable 28% from the field, including only 22% in the decisive 3rd quarter, which created a deficit they could not make up.
Cole Ptacek led the Tornadoes with 13 points. Tyson Coon had 8, Easton Mead and Brody Mitchell each had 6, and Jean-Philippe Guillaume added 4 to complete the scoring.
1st 2nd 3rd 4th Final EHS 9 8 2 18 37 CHS 5 15 13 19 52
Against Anderson County In the second game of the tournament, the Tornadoes lost to Anderson County High School 31-66. Once again, the third quarter was decisive, as the Tornadoes scored only 7, (hitting 3 of 17 shots from the field) while the Anderson County squad hit 25, mostly from beyond the arc. The Tornadoes battled foul trouble throughout the game in addition to struggling to score. Coon led the Tornadoes with 13 points. Ptacek had 9, Guillaume added 4. Wacey Ross with 3 and Mitchell with 2 ended the scoring for the Tornadoes.
1st 2nd 3rd 4th Final EHS 6 14 7 4 31 ACHS 13 14 25 14 66
Against Crest
In the final game of the tournament, the Tornadoes played Crest High School. The Tornadoes lost this game by two, 41-43. They mounted a strong effort throughout the game but spotted the Lancers an 8-point lead at the half, which they came just short of making up in the second half.
They played much better defense and shot better this time around, which showed up in the final score.
Coon led the Tornadoes with 11 points. Mead and Mitchell had 9 each. Ptacek had 8, and Kotah Davis had 4.
1st 2nd 3rd 4th Final EHS 8 13 8 12 41 CHS 15 14 4 10 43
Up Next
The Tornadoes return home this week, with action against Caney on Tuesday and Fredonia on Friday, for the winter royalty event.
1 x 3.25 $25.19
