LA CYGNE — After taking to the court less than 48 hours after a bitter overtime defeat at Burlington, Iola High’s Mustangs had a halftime lead Thursday at Prairie View.
But head coach Luke Bycroft was anything but happy.
The Mustangs held a 26-19 advantage, but were letting Prairie View dictate the game’s pace.
“They played hard and aggressive, maybe even a little out of control,” Bycroft said. “We let that lead us into playing the same way.”
So Byroft spent much of the halftime break repeating his pregame warning: “Don’t let their chaos lead to our chaos.”
“But at halftime, we addressed it a little more vigorously than I did during the game,” Bycroft said. “I was a little calmer before the game than I was at halftime.”
After the halftime chewing out, the Mustangs approached the third quarter with a bit more focus.
The lead swelled to double digits on Matt Beckmon’s 3-pointer 90 seconds into the second half, and Iola never looked back.
The Mustangs ended the game with a 21-2 run to cruise to a 56-27 win, improving to 4-2 at the Christmas break.
“Once we took care of the ball, we were fine,” Bycroft said. “It just took us a while to play well.”
The Mustangs were trailing 8-5 late in the first quarter before taking the lead on an 11-2 run.
The margin stayed near the half-dozen mark for the balance of the half.
“We were just sloppy with the ball, and we got in a hurry,” Bycroft said. “That’s exactly what they wanted.”
His message at the break was simple.
“I vocalized exactly what my expectations were, and I told each player that if that doesn’t happen, they will come sit down next to me.”
