Boys’ basketball defeated by Henry Sibley

Park falls behind after first half, costing the game

Captain+senior+Aaron+Ellingson+looks+to+pass+the+ball+to+a+teammate+Dec.+10+against+Henry+Sibley.+Park+will+face+Hopkins+at+7%3A30+p.m.+Dec.+12+at+St.+Louis+Park+High+School.+

Sadie Yarosh

Captain senior Aaron Ellingson looks to pass the ball to a teammate Dec. 10 against Henry Sibley. Park will face Hopkins at 7:30 p.m. Dec. 12 at St. Louis Park High School.

Adin Zweigbaum

After giving up a strong lead, Park boys’ lost to Henry Sibley, according to sophomore Deontez Ross.

“We started off strong, but we let them gain a lot of momentum,” Ross said. “At the end of the first half we let them get back into the game, they got comfortable, and we let them make a big run to win.”

Coach Dave Breitenbucher said the loss on Dec 10 was upsetting, but was due to the team playing sloppy.

“It was frustrating, we got a lead, we were up 27 to 11 and we got undisciplined,” Breitenbucher said. “We stopped running our stuff, we stopped playing defense we let them get in the gaps and things kind of spiraled.”

According to Junior Paris Johnson, the team needs to work harder in practice and not get too relaxed when they hold a lead.

“We need to work on getting more shots up, boxing out, and just working harder in practice,” Johnson said. “It started out good but then we got too comfortable with the big lead and then just lost it.”

Ross explained the physical aspect was not one of the major drivers in the loss, but rather it was the team’s state of mind during the game.

“We followed the game plan very good at the beginning of the game, but we lost focus and got off track,” Ross said. “Then we just disrespected the team and they made us pay.”

The team played inconsistently, with some streaks of both strong and poor play, according to Breitenbucher.

“I thought we did a good job for minutes at a time, but that’s the problem — we have these ups and downs right now,” Breitenbucher said. “That’s something we’ve got to correct. We got to be more consistent. We’re way, way too emotional.”

Parks’ next game will take place against Hopkins 7:30 p.m. Dec. 10 at St. Louis Park High School.