Second overtime game yields a win over Yuma

    Less than a week after losing a double overtime game, the Chase County Longhorns needed another overtime to capture their first win of the season.
    The Longhorns held the Yuma Indians to just two points in the extra period en route to the  58-53 win here Thursday, Dec. 14.
    The victory also marked the first head coaching win for Coach Chris Bartels, who took over the Longhorn program this season.
    Bartels said it was an important win for his team. “They needed it,” Bartels said. Losing two overtime games back-to-back after working so hard thus far “would not have been good for anybody.”
    After their double overtime loss the week before, Bartels said they spent their entire day last Monday breaking down film of that game.
    When players get out of position or miss an assignment, he said it’s a lot easier  for them to understand the consequences when they can see it for themselves.
    They also watched a lot of film on Yuma and knew they could get their 6-7 big man, Jake Chrisman, in foul trouble by going right at him.
    The Longhorns did just that and got him in foul trouble in the first half and fouled him out late in the fourth quarter with only nine points.
    The win gave the kids the reassurance they need as they head into the Christmas break, Bartels said.
    They are a good basketball team and they’ll begin to believe that as well, Bartels added.
    He’s already seen so much improvement from the opening game with Cozad to now.
    He said they’ve shored up both their transition defense and rebounding. They also shot better at the line against Yuma, going 11-18, and made some key free throws down the stretch in regulation and overtime.
Wau-Pal before the break
    The Longhorns traveled to Wauneta-Palisade Tuesday night to close out the pre-Christmas schedule.
    After a break in scheduling, the two teams resumed their battle for county bragging rights this year.
    Bartels said he never envisioned going back to the Wauneta gym to face his high school alma mater as the head coach for Chase County.
    He coached against his high school coach and mentor Dave Kuhlen. Bartels said his relationship with Kuhlen, both as a student and a player, was what led him to pursue a teaching and coaching career.
    The practice and game moratorium for Nebraska high schools begin Saturday, Dec. 23 through Wednesday, Dec. 27.
    On Dec. 28-30, both the boys’ and girls’ Longhorn basketball teams will compete in the Cabela’s Shootout in Sidney.
    A bracket appears elsewhere in sports.
Yuma ranked third in class
    Yuma brought a 4-1 record into last week’s game, losing only to Goodland, Kan., in an early-season tournament.
    They were also ranked No. 3 in Colorado’s 2A class when the Longhorns knocked them off last week.
    Trailing by three early, the Longhorns went on a 10-1 run. They got bookend treys from Scott Wheeler and Taylor Jablonski with buckets by Cedric Maxwell and Jack Bauerle sandwiched in between.
    After leading by six, they finished the quarter with a four-point 18-14 lead.

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