Basketball Recap: Quinten Koenen Leads a Balanced Attack to Beat Bayard

After having lost a blowout in their previous game against Paxton, South Platte was happy to have turned things around on Thursday. They enjoyed a cozy 67-48 win over the Bayard Tigers. The Blue Knights haven't had any issues with the Tigers recently, as the game was their third consecutive victory against them.

Quinten Koenen

Points

02/13/25 vs Bayard	25
02/08/25 @ Paxton	16
02/07/25 vs Arthur County	20
01/31/25 vs Hemingford	21

South Platte's success was the result of a balanced attack that saw several players step up, but Quinten Koenen led the charge by dropping a double-double with 25 points and ten boards. Koenen's evening made it four games in a row in which he has scored at least 16 points. The team also got some help courtesy of Oscar Ornelas, who posted nine points and eight rebounds.

South Platte smashed the offensive glass and finished the game with 17 offensive boards. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now pulled down at least eight offensive rebounds in five consecutive contests.

Several Tigers players turned in solid performances despite ultimately coming up short. Perhaps the best among those players was Anderson Gaarder, who almost dropped a double-double with 15 points and nine boards. With that strong performance, Gaarder is now averaging an impressive 2.1 steals per game. Connor Cochran was another key player, putting up 13 points.

South Platte's record now sits at 12-9. As for Bayard, they are on a four-game losing streak that has dropped them down to 4-16.

South Platte has already played their next matchup, a 56-44 win against Creek Valley on the 14th. Bayard does not have any more games scheduled as of now.