The Milford boys’ basketball team faced a pair of tough opponents and went 1-1 last week. The Eagles fell to Aurora 53-32 and beat Thayer Central 67-47.
Miford came out strong in the first quarter against Aurora, scoring 11 points and defending well, Coach Mitchell Marvin said. The Eagles trailed by five at the end of the period and by nine at the half.
MHS had one of its moments in the third quarter, he said, allowing Aurora to turn turnovers into layups and extend its lead.
“The little moments make a difference,” he said.
Zeb Reil led the Eagles with nine points and seven rebounds. Colby Rautenberg guarded Booker Scheierman and did a good job, Marvin said.
“He made every shot hard,” he said.
The next game, the Eagles put together four quarters and showed what they are capable of, Marvin said. The team shot 45% for the game, hitting 21 of 43 from two, and made 16 of 23 free throw attempts.
In addition, the Milford defense held Thayer Central senior Sam Souerdyke, who had scored 37 earlier in the week against Wilber-Clatonia, to just 11 points.
Marvin said the team had fun playing basketball Saturday, and it was good to see that joy again.
“They were having a blast,” he said.
Isaac Roth led the team with 26 points and was 10-15 shooting. Reil added 11 and Gage Dunlap 10 points and nine rebounds. Rautenberg, who guarded Souerdyke most of the game, scored eight, had five rebounds and blocked four shots.
The Eagles (4-8) were to play at Columbus Lakeview Jan. 21 and host Beatrice Thursday, Jan. 23, at 7:30 p.m.
“The goal is to keep the train moving forward,” Marvin said.