Wolves taste defeat in Rock Springs

The Wolves slide to 1-2 in conference basketball play after a 81-65 defeat from the Rock Springs Tigers Thursday night.

The Wolves entered the contest after a mixed weekend, taking a 57-41 loss from Evanston and a 71-51 victory over Jackson. The Wolves initially stepped up to the Tigers' challenge. While finding themselves behind the Tigers throughout the night, the Wolves kept the deficit manageable throughout the first half. Both the Tigers and Wolves found difficulty finding the basket in the first few minutes, with heavy defense on both sides of the ball keeping the Wolves scoreless and the Tigers to only five points. Senior Chance Hofer scored the first two points with 5:01 left in the first quarter, after which both sides opened up and found more scoring opportunities. The tigers found their basket much more frequently than the Wolves as the quarter ended 17-9, in favor of Rock Springs. The second quarter saw an invigorated Wolves basketball team claw their way up from the deficit, almost tying with the Tigers midway through the quarter. However, the Tigers' defense proved difficult to overcome, through their lead diminished to six points by the end of half with a score of 34-28. During the second half, the Wolves didn't fare much better and despite a valiant effort, were faced with a widening deficit as the quarters played out.

Head coach Laurie Ivie said the Wolves had a great defensive effort in the first half, but said they have to take better care of the basketball.

"We had 21 turnovers and Rock Springs out-rebounded us by 23," Ivie said. "Both of those numbers are unacceptable. We essentially gave them 44 extra possessions."

Ivie said the team has to step up to the challenge of boxing out and rebounding the ball when the opportunity presents itself.

"We need to step up to that challenge on every, single shot," Ivie said.

The Wolves will travel to Natrona County this weekend, taking on Natrona County High School Friday and Kelly Walsh Saturday. Like the Wolves, Natrona currently sits with a 1-2 conference record, having losses against their cross-town rivals Kelly Walsh and against Evanston, but a win against Jackson. Kelly Walsh sits with a 2-1 record, with wins over Natrona and Jackson and one loss against Evanston.

Ivie said her team's focus remains the same: getting better each time the Wolves step out onto the court and playing through with a game plan that results in beating their opponents in the next contest.

"We focus on us," Ivie said. "Playing Green River Wolves basketball."