Saints play defense in loss at North Butler
By Kristi Nixon
GREENE — A defensive struggle against North Butler resulted in a 42-27 loss to the Bearcats at their place on Monday, Jan. 17.
The Saints, already down a player as Griffin Carlson was in street clothes, also lost starter Will Knowlton, who rolled his ankle late in the first half.
Knowlton hit a pair of three-pointers as coach Bret Williams’ team kept it close in the early going, leading 5-2 in the first four minutes and not losing that lead until 2:19 remaining in the first quarter.
That is when the Bearcats went on a 7-0 run to lead 12-5 after the first eight minutes.
However, the Saints answered and momentarily took a 15-14 lead on one of Knowlton’s threes at the 4:11 mark of the second quarter.
North Butler went on to take a 23-17 advantage into halftime with 11 points from their big man Corbin Lewis, who nearly had a triple-double with 10 rebounds and six blocked shots.
Jex Schutjer finished with four points in each half to tally a team-high eight points as St. Ansgar dropped to 1-11 overall, 1-8 in the Top of Iowa East.
