Litchfield’s boys basketball team made the most of an opportunity to play on a bigger stage.
The Dragons opened a 10-point halftime lead and held off Zumbrota-Mazeppa 36-28 in a nonconference game at Target Center in Minneapolis.
The win, Litchfield’s third in its last four games, lifted the Dragons’ record to 5-6 on the season. It was the last in a series of nonconference games that included three games at the Crusader Basketball Classic at St. Cloud Cathedral during the holiday break, and a game Jan. 4 at Sauk Centre.
Litchfield earned fifth-place at the Cathedral tournament, where it lost its opening game by one point and rebounded to win its next two. That was followed by a 62-49 loss to Sauk Centre, a game in which the Dragons saw a two-point halftime lead end in the 13-point loss.
Saturday’s game on the Minnesota Timberwolves home court was about the experience of playing in an NBA arena, and coach Matt Draeger went deep into his bench to ensure his varsity roster saw at least a few seconds on the floor.
But it was also a game that counted, and the Dragons responded well after the loss at Sauk Centre earlier in the week.
Litchfield built a 10-point halftime lead, then withstood a late Zumbrota-Mazeppa charge to register the win. Beau Weseloh led the way with a game-high 14 points, the only Dragons’ player to reach double figures in the defensive battle. Dom Dietel added six points, while Logan King and Blake Aller had five each for Litchfield.
It was a rough shooting day for Litchfield, as it converted on just over 30 percent (14 of 46) of its shots from the field, including 2-for-16 shooting from beyond the three-point arc.
But the Dragons made it an even worse shooting day for the opposition, which shot just 23 percent (11 of 47) from the floor. Litchfield also outrebounded Zumbrota-Mazeppa 32-25.
The Dragons now head into the heart of their Wright County Conference-West schedule, with two home games this week — Annandale Tuesday (after this edition of the Independent Review went to press) and Dassel-Cokato Friday. Annandale, a perennial WCC favorite, is 6-2 on the season, while D-C is 4-6 overall.
