Monticello cruises past Vinton-Shellsburg, moves on to district semi-final
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MONTICELLO – The Panthers allowed an average of 34.2 points a game this season, and their outstanding defense showed up again in the first round of District play against the Vikings from Vinton-Shellsburg. The Panthers only allowed 26 points, cruising…
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Continue ReadingMONTICELLO – The Panthers allowed an average of 34.2 points a game this season, and their outstanding defense showed up again in the first round of District play against the Vikings from Vinton-Shellsburg. The Panthers only allowed 26 points, cruising to a 56-26 victory and moving onto a second-round matchup against Central DeWitt.
It was a tough first quarter for both teams, with the Panthers only leading 9-1 after one quarter. Luke Lambert Luke Lambert 6'3" | PG Monticello | 2021 State IA got the Panthers scoring going with an early three, and Justin Recker Justin Recker 6'6" | PF Monticello | 2021 State IA laid in a couple of buckets to give the Panthers their lead after one. Ryan Moore got the lid off the hoop for Vikings, with an early three-pointer in the second. The Vikings switched back to man-to-man and crawled back a little bit, but after a three from Riley Manternach, the Panthers took a 22-10 lead into the break.
Monticello kept pulling away in the third, getting out to a 7-0 scoring run in the first couple minutes of the third. A three by Connor Lambert Connor Lambert 6'4" | SF Monticello | 2021 State IA gave Monticello a 29-10 lead and forced a timeout from Vinton-Shellsburg. The Vikings caught Monticello’s offense off guard and forced some turnovers when they put a little press on halfway through the third. The Panther defense was still too much, as VS did a lot of their scoring from the charity strike. Luke Lambert Luke Lambert 6'3" | PG Monticello | 2021 State IA got the scoring going in the fourth with a couple of nice finishes at the hoop. With the Panthers up 49-20 with four minutes left, both teams pulled the starters and let the reserves get some minutes. The game went final with a score of 56-26, in favor of the Panthers.
Team | 1Q | 2Q | 3Q | 4Q | Final |
Monticello | 9 | 13 | 16 | 18 | 56 |
Vinton-Shellsburg | 1 | 9 | 10 | 6 | 26 |
Takeaways: The Panthers have an elite defense, with some weapons on offense to go with it. They run good sets on offense, are very patient on offense, and rarely take bad shots. On defense, the Panthers allow the fewest points a game in the entire state (34.2). 2021 guard Ty Kehoe Ty Kehoe 6'0" | PG Monticello | 2021 State IA has lead the Panthers defense all year, and did again Monday night with two steals and a block. Pesty defense on and off the ball, they generate turnovers and turn them into easy offense. The Panthers will be a tough out in 3A.
2021 Justin Recker Justin Recker 6'6" | PF Monticello | 2021 State IA (Monticello)
The 6’6″ senior forward led the Panthers again this season averaging 14.8 points a game to go with 7.5 rebounds. The big man has solid footwork down low, can finish at the hoop, and not forget, super athletic. Getting doubled quite a bit, Recker has good vision out of the post, averaging 3.0 assists a game. In their first-round district matchup, he notched another double-double with 15 points and 14 rebounds.
2023 Tate Petersen Tate Petersen 6'1" | PG Monticello | 2023 State IA (Monticello)
Just a sophomore, Petersen has made a huge impact on this Panther squad. Second on the team in scoring (11.7 a game), he is an elite point guard. He can handle the ball (only 1.0 turnover a game), facilitate the ball very well (3.8 assists a game), and shoots 38% from beyond the arc. Petersen had a quiet night on Monday, but expect him to bounce back through the rest of district play.
2021 Luke Lambert Luke Lambert 6'3" | PG Monticello | 2021 State IA (Monticello)
The senior combo guard can do it all for the Panthers. He has very good court vision, the ability to finish at the rim, and a very solid shooter from the outside. Averaging just under ten points a contest, Lambert leads the team in assists at 4.8 a game. At 6’3″, he is also active on the boards (5.2 a game). In the Monday night contest, Lambert finished with 10 points and 4 assists.
2021 David Lapan-Islas (Vinton-Shellsburg)
Lapan-Islas was energetic all night in the Vikings loss to Monticello. The 5’10″ senior used his energy to lead the Vikings Monday night. Offensively, he has the ability to finish at the hoop and is solid from mid-range. On the other side of the ball, Lapan-Islas was pesty all night on his matchup.