DULUTH— Slow starts proved troublesome for the Timberwolves as they dropped two straight matches over the past week, to fall to 10-4 on the season.
Against Duluth Marshall on Saturday, Ely struggled against the Hilltoppers’ six-foot, four-inch senior forward Brooks Johnson, who was nearly unstoppable on the inside as he led his squad to a 72-61 victory. “He got a lot of easy baskets with our lack of size inside,” said Ely Head Coach Tom McDonald. Ely fell behind early although a late game rally cut the gap to just six points, but they just couldn’t hold off Johnson, who was recently signed to a basketball deal at UMD.
The Wolves showed a balance offense, with Caid Chittum, Jack Davies, and Drew Johnson each pouring in 17 points. Chittum had 11 rebounds as well for the double-double, but it wasn’t enough to stay ahead of the Hilltoppers’ firepower.
Saturday’s defeat came in the wake of last Thursday’s 69-59 loss at home at the hands of the Rangers. “We got down 51-26 early in the second half but fought back and cut it to eight late in the game,” said McDonald. “The difference was we shot the ball well in that stretch and made some stops on the offensive end.”
Despite the loss, McDonald was satisfied that the Wolves had gotten back in the game after falling behind in the early going. “Last year we were blown out three times by MI-B so it was good to be competitive.”
Chittum led the Wolves offensively with 25 points and 13 rebounds for yet another double-double. Johnson and Trent Bishop connected on five treys apiece to round out the major scorers for Ely.
TJ Duchamp led MI-B on offense with 27 points, while Chris King added 20 along with 12 boards.
The Wolves Tuesday night home contest with McGregor was rescheduled to Thursday night, after the Timberjay’s weekly press time. They’re set to travel to Littlefork on Friday to take on the Vikings. They’ll be back home on Tuesday to host Greenway.