The Munising boys basketball team and host Crystal Falls Forest Park battled it out throughout the night last Friday. The host Trojans had just enough to outlast Munising, however, and they handed the Mustangs their first blemish of the season, 62-56.
“We started the game a little cold in the first quarter, and they got a lead on us,” Munising head coach Terry Kienitz said. “Then it was neck-and-neck after that. Forest Park is a very good team. They got a lead, and they stopped every run we had with a run of their own.”
The Mustangs faced a 13-5 hole after the first quarter. Jack Dusseault buried two 3-pointers in the second and Carson Kienitz had a hot hand as well, hitting a 3 and scoring seven points in the frame. Forest Park still held a 2821 lead at the half.
The third quarter was highlighted by an and-one play from Kienitz, who added seven more points in the stanza. Nolan Connaughton and Trevor Nolan sank a 3-pointer apiece. Entering the fourth, the Mustangs trailed 46-38.
Kienitz canned three more treys in the fourth and Nolan hit one as well, but it wasn’t enough for the Mustangs to pull off the comeback.
“Carson had a big night with 28 points, scoring multiple ways: hitting 3s, driving to the hoop and posting up,” Terry Kienitz said. “Foul trouble hurt us in the end with a few fouling out. [That] really hurt our chances of mounting a comeback. But I’m proud of the way they played; they did great and played hard.”
To go along with Kienitz’s 28 points, Dusseault poured in 12. Nolan netted eight, Connaughton added seven and Zach Lindquist scored one.
The Trojans were led by Viv Giuliani with 18 points, and Kevin Giuliani contributed 14 points.
On Dec. 16, Munising recorded a blowout home win over Rapid River, 70-27.
“Good game on both sides of the ball; nice offensive night and played great defensively,” Kienitz said. “Our full-court defense led to a lot of our offense and easy layups. We had good balance scoring with four of the starting five in double digits. Also, good balance with 20 two-point field goals and seven 3-point field goals. Had some good minutes and contribution from our bench.”
The Mustangs had a huge opening quarter, taking a 29-4 advantage. They had another good frame in the second to take a 4713 lead at the half. After three quarters of play, they held a 62-21 advantage.
Nolan was the leading scorer in this one, drilling four 3-pointers as part of his 23 points. Dusseault had 12 points, Kientiz hit for 11 and Connaughton scored 10 points. Caiden Curtis added four points, Dylan Adkinson and Scout Linsenman both scored three, and Lindquist and Keegan Long each added two.
For the Rockets, Ethan Harrison scored nine points.
The Mustangs (5-1 overall) were at Westwood on Thursday. They play in Ishpeming tonight and will take on Brimley at Little Caesars Arena in Detroit on Jan. 3. They’ll play host to Manistique on Jan. 6.
“
They got a lead, and they stopped every run we had with a run of their own.
—Terry
Kienitz
”
