The Cardinals took a 32-32 tie early in the third quarter and then went on a 23-4 run to defeat the Litchfield Dragons going away 64-44 in Wright County Conference boys basketball action on Friday night, Feb. 20. It was the second time this season the Cards have defeated Litchfield, and the win put Annandale at 8-3 in the WCC and 17-3 overall. “We were a very happy group,” said coach Skip Dolan. After a week of struggle that left them with one close win and an equally close loss, Friday night’s home victory was just what the Cardinals needed. “We’ve been struggling with our shooting and our total game. Friday we felt like we were back on track,” he said. Annandale led by six after a quarter of play, but the defending state champions hit a three-point shot at the buzzer to pull within three at the half, 29-26. Litchfield took a 32-29 lead early in the third quarter but did not hold it for long. Jeremy Stuhr, who had three three-pointers, hit one from behind the stripe to tie the game. Tyler Haag and David Queck followed with baskets, and then Adam Berg hit a three-pointer. Meanwhile, the Cardinals’ swarming defense gave up no points. Stuhr hit a runner, and Queck hit a three-pointer to the delight of the Cardinal fans. Litchfield called a time out, but it was the Cardinals that came out of it energized. While the Dragons scored four more points in the quarter, Haag hit another basket and Berg hit a baseline three-pointer as time expired in the third quarter. The Cardinals led 49-36. Annandale continued the attack in the fourth quarter, and the Dragons never got close again. Mitch McGuire opened the quarter with a bucket underneath. Tim Greve added a pair of free throws, Haag went on a five-point scoring run, and Nick Wurm erased any doubt when he buried a three-pointer with about 5:30 to play, making the score 59-36. Annandale went into the clock management mode the rest of the way. With just under three minutes to play, Dolan substituted for his core players, and the Cardinals ran out the clock, but not before Alan Imholte hit a three-pointer for the final points of the game, 64-41. “A big thing was our offense,” said Dolan. “We really forced them to come and get the ball.” That, combined with well executed plays and balanced scoring, made the Cardinals a tough opponent. Annandale received consistent play from everyone and eventually wore down the Dragons. Adam Berg had three three-pointers as well and finished with 11 points. Stuhr led with 13, Greve and McGuire each had nine and Haag had eight. Queck had five points and Grant Tilus added a key three-pointer in the first half. Annandale’s McGuire held Litchfield’s big man, 6-foot, 9-inch Robert Bruesewitz, to just 10 points. At the previous game, Bruesewitz scored 22 points on the Cardinals. “It was nice to see Jeremy Stuhr and Adam Berg get their shooting touch back,” Dolan said. “And to have David Queck back in form after his ankle injury.” The Cardinals connected on 10 of 11 shots from the free throw line. Annandale will travel to Delano on Thursday, Feb. 24, then meet Becker at home on Friday Feb. 27, for two of the last conference games of the season. Both games start at 7:30 p.m. The WCC title, which is still up for grabs, will depend on how they do this week and next, when they take on Dassel-Cokato in the final WCC matchup on Friday, March 3. Glencoe-Silver Lake holds the first place spot, and Becker the second, but Annandale is in third and coming on strong. “Delano has beaten most everybody at home, so it won’t be easy to play there,” Dolan said. As for Becker, they defeated the Cardinals by a point earlier and Annandale’s looking forward to a rematch. The key now, Dolan said, “is to take care of ourselves.”
