GRANADA — Just before the Truman/Martin Luther/Granada-Huntley-East Chain Jaguars boys basketball team’s game, school officials cut the ribbon to officially open Granada-Huntley-East Chain High School’s new gym. The team used that energy to pull out a 60-55 win over the Madelia Blackhawks during Valley Conference play Friday night.

“It’s a special night here in Granada. We had the first game here last night, but that was a lot of working out the kinks,” Jaguars head coach Brian Borkenhagen said. “Everybody showed up (tonight), we had a full house. … The place was loud no matter who you were cheering for. It’s a good atmostphere for a high school basketball game. That doesn’t happen every night. I’m glad that we pulled through and played smart at the end.”

Senior forward Zayne Engel started the Jaguars off with five points before the Blackhawks answered back with five points. Jaguars senior guard Dylan Martin and Blackhawks junior guard Rigo Flores then traded off 3’s for another tie.

With 13:17 remaining, Flores brought down a rebound and went coast-to-coast for a quick layup to give the Blackhawks a 10-8 lead. Blackhawks senior guard Matt Baumgartner then nailed back-to-back treys to put the visiting team up 19-12 before Borkenhagen called for a timeout at the 10:42 mark.

Around 20 seconds later, Jaguars junior center Mason Maloney was fouled just before Blackhawks head coach Jeff VanHee was assessed two technical fouls. Maloney only made one of his shots, and senior guard Garrett Balcom made all four technical foul baskets to inch the Jaguars within two.

Baumgartner netted a foul shot less than a minute after, but the Jaguars came back and tied the game on junior guard James Schrunk’s open 3, with an assist from fellow junior guard Quintin Greier.

“James did a good job of playing there all game long, playing smart and hard because really, he’s our backup point guard. When he was out there, he was basically the two-guard the whole time. He did a really good job,” Borkenhagen said.

Jaguars junior forward Derek Shoen knocked down another 3-pointer at the 5:48 mark for the team’s first lead in nearly 10 minutes.

Engel added on with a bucket, and Shoen passed out to senior guard Carter Wille, who drained a trey for the 28-22 advantage.

Flores managed to stop the Jaguars’ run with a steal that he converted into a quick layup. With less than 30 seconds to go in the opening half, Flores brought the Blackhawks within three with a quick basket.

But the Jaguars ran down the clock and got the last shot when Balcom swung right and hit Schrunk, who made the 3 for a 35-29 halftime lead.

“That’s the first game where we’ve made more than two 3’s in a game, and we were hitting from the outside with different guys,” Borkenhagen said about his team which went 5-for-14 from outside in the half. “It was good to see shots go down.”

Engel and senior forward Augie Reihs each supplied the first points of the half for their respective teams with the Jaguars leading by seven at the 15-minute juncture.

Baumgartner got his own rebound and put in the shot before Flores fed junior guard Jarly Godoy-Portillo for a basket that cut the Jaguars’ lead to three. But the Jaguars stretched out a 10-point lead in four minutes when Borkenhagen called for a timeout with 8:33 left in the contest.

In the final two minutes, the Blackhawks were able to get within two of the Jaguars. Baumgartner, who had a Blackhawks-leading 19 points and 10 rebounds coming off the bench, made two foul shots before hitting a 3 for the 57-55 deficit with 30 seconds remaining.

The Blackhawks then fouled Balcom, who made both shots at the charity stripe, giving him six points in the game. Blackhawks senior forward Ernesto Arizmendi, who totaled 13 points and five rebounds, tried for one last shot, but missed. Shoen got the rebound and was fouled immediately after, and with one of two baskets made, the Jaguars pocketed the five-point victory on the new hardwood. Shoen produced 13 points and five rebounds with a steal for the Jaguars.

“We learned a lot about our team in the second half there as far as putting the game away, so that’s good,” Borkenhagen said. “As far as the turnovers, we have to minimalize our turnovers … so we don’t give up those extra possessions because that’s what happened. They got some extra possessions there and they’d pop back up. Overall, I thought we did a good job, but we have room for improvement.”

Engel completed a game-high double-double performance of 24 points, going 10-for-12 on the floor, and 11 rebounds with a block.

“We were feeding it to him inside and he was finishing most of the time. When he wasn’t, he was getting fouled,” Borkenhagen said about Engel. “He did a good job of playing his position.”

Martin and Schrunk came off the bench and chipped in six and seven points, respectively, for the Jaguars. Maloney crashed the boards for six rebounds.

“I thought all the guys did a good job playing their positions,” Borkenhagen said. “(They weren’t) trying to do too much, just simple plays.”

Truman/Martin Luther/Granada-Huntley-East Chain (6-5) plays at Heron Lake-Okabena Tuesday.

TMLGHEC (60)

Zayne Engel 10-12 4-6 24, Derek Shoen 4-9 4-10 13, James Schrunk 2-4 1-2 7, Dylan Martin 2-5 1-2 6, Garrett Balcom 0-3 6-7 6, Carter Wille 1-1 0-4 3, Mason Maloney 0-3 1-2 1, Quintin Greier 0-3 0-0 0, Zach Wolter 0-2 0-0 0, Jorn Olson 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 19-42 17-33 60.

MADELIA (55)

Matt Baumgartner 4-12 8-14 19, Ernesto Arizmendi 5-14 1-2 13, Rigo Flores 4-5 0-0 9, Jeffrey Alvarenga 0-8 6-7 6, Augie Reihs 3-8 0-0 6, Jarly Godoy-Portillo 1-2 0-2 2, Ja’Sean Glover 0-2 0-0 0, Josh Sletta 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 17-51 15-25 55.

3-pointers: Madelia 6-14 (Baumgartner 3-5, Arizmendi 2-5, Flores 1-2 Glover 0-2); Truman/Martin Luther/Granada-Huntley-East Chain 5-16 (Wille 1-1, Schrunk 2-3, Shoen 1-3, Martin 1-4, Maloney 0-1, Wolter 0-2, Greier 0-2). Fouled out: Arizmendi. Rebounds: TMLGHEC (Engel 11, Maloney 6); Madelia 28 (Baumgartner 10). Assists: Madelia 6; TMLGHEC 5. Steals: Madelia 7 (Godoy-Portillo 3); TMLGHEC 5.

Martin County West 55, Alden-Conger 45 — Cam Dressen produced 14 points, four rebounds, three steals and three assists to steer the Mavericks to a 10-point Valley Conference victory over the Knights on Friday night in Alden.

Logan Ebeling collected 11 points and eight rebounds for MCW, while teammate Wyatt Geistfeld contributed eight points and a game-high 16 rebounds.

The Mavericks made 15 of 33 shots from 2-point range, 5 of 22 behind the 3-point arc and 10 of 19 at the free throw line.

Dillan Lein scored a game-best 21 points to top the Knights, while teammate Ryan Hansen chipped in 10 points.

The Knights connected on 13 of 25 shots from 2-point range, 2 of 16 behind the 3-point line and 13 of 25 at the charity stripe.

Martin County West (2-8, 1-2 Valley) travels to Fairmont on Tuesday night.

MCW     32-23–55

A-C        24-21–45

St. James Area 60, Blue Earth Area 49 — Brady Stevens erupted for a game-leading 24 points to power the Saints to an 11-point Big South Conference triumph over the Bucs on Friday night in Blue Earth.

Parker Jones netted 16 points for St. James Area, while teammate Sandin Skow contributed 14 points.

Blake Barnett generated 15 points to pace the Bucs’ effort, Collin Bell produced 12 points, while Caelan Sanders chipped in seven points.

Blue Earth Area (3-6) travels to Jackson County Central on Tuesday night, while St. James Area (4-4) plays host to New Ulm at 7:15 p.m. tonight in a rescheduled game.

SJA       33-27–60

BEA      21-28–49

Garner-Hayfield/Ventura 66, North Union 39 — Nick Joynt and James Betz each delivered 14 points to pace the Cardinals’ 27-point Top of Iowa Conference triumph over the Warriors on Friday night in Armstrong.

Nathan Eaton tallied nine points and distributed five assists to top North Union, while Parker Oleson scored seven points.

Trent Pedersen chalked up six points, six rebounds, four steals and three assists for the Warriors, while teammate Riley Bauer chipped in six points.

The Warriors made 10 of 22 from 2-point range, 6 of 22 behind the 3-point arc and 1 of 2 at the free throw line.

North Union (4-6) travels to Graettinger-Terril/Ruthven-Ayrshire on Tuesday night.

Girls Basketball

North Union 50, Garner-Hayfield/Ventura 41 — The Warriors improved to 10-0 on the season on the strength of a nine-point Top of Iowa Conference victory over the Cardinals on Friday night in Armstrong.

Chloe Lofstrom netted 12 points to top a balanced North Union scoring attack, while Hallie Reese and Breanna Anderson each supplied 10 points to the win.

Breanna Anderson also grabbed five rebounds, made three steals and doled out three assists, while Reese collected five boards and three assists.

Samantha Hagedorn supplied eight points and distributed five assists for the Warriors, while Kate Anderson tallied six points and three steals.

The Warriors made 19 of 42 field goals, including 4 of 15 from the 3-point arc, to go with 8-for-16 shooting from the free throw line.

North Union (10-0) travels to Graettinger-Terril/Ruthven-Ayrshire on Tuesday night.

Minnehaha Academy 79, Martin County West 57 — Mia Curtis erupted for a game-best 24 points to guide the Redhawks to a 22-point nonconference win over the Mavericks on Friday night in Minneapolis.

Hunter Wrightson produced 20 points and five rebounds for MCW, while teammate Sierra Williamson scored 12 points.

Maia Taylor contributed eight points, five boards and three assists to the Mavericks’ cause, while Alyssa Williamson doled out four assists and pocketed three steals.

Cheyenne Owens also garnered three steals for the Mavericks, who made 21 of 64 field goals and 10 of 18 free throws on the night.

Martin County West (6-3) plays host to Blue Earth Area on Tuesday night in Trimont.

MCW     35-22–57

MHA      38-41–79