Mustangs start year with three game sweep

The Malta Mustangs started 2017 with a bang as they defeated the Harlem Wildcats 62-41 last Tuesday night at the Malta High School Gymnasium. They then went on to defeat the Roundup Panthers 54-38 last Saturday night in Malta and the Rocky Boy Northern Stars 57-48 in Rocky Boy last Friday.

The team is set to meet with the Glasgow Scotties in Glasgow on Friday night on January 13 at 6:30 p.m. They will meet with Shelby on Saturday, January 14 at 3:00 p.m. for the first time since they fell to the Coyotes in the Northern B last season.

In their win over Harlem, Malta was led by Nate Costin, who scored a game high 20 points, ten of which came in the fourth quarter.

"The turnovers helped a lot with the transition buckets," senior guard Nate Costin said. "We moved the ball well and got good looks at the hoop."

Jace Bishop had a solid game, racking up 13 points. Taylor Matthews and Tel Jensen both had eight points each. Ostin Welch had seven points. Blake Sjostrom had four points and Hunter Love had two points.

Jensen was a bright spot for Malta, coming off the bench and attacking both offensively and defensively.

"Just being intense," Jensen said when asked about the key to their win. "Defense leads to good offense. That's what Coach Costin always says."

The game started off with a lot of intensity as both teams traded buckets early and hard into the paint, causing the officials to call charges on both. The first quarter score was 10-9 in favor of the Wildcats.

"It kind of felt like we were slow," Costin said. "We moved the ball, but I don't think we drove it like we should. I don't think we moved our feet on defense. A little patience would've helped a lot. We were kind of rusty after a lot of practice and no games."

The rust showed as Malta missed plenty of layups that could've put them ahead early.

"The beginning of the game is tough," Jensen said. "You might be a little cold but in the middle of the game you get warmed up, get used to it and that helps throughout the rest of the game."

The Wildcats would strike first in the second, knocking down two jump shots, putting them up 14-9. Malta would bounce back and take the momentum of the game thanks to a Costin eight footer in which he was fouled then knocked down the charity shot to cut down Harlem's lead 14-12. Costin would score the next points with another jumper, tying the game up at 14. Jensen would cash in off of a Konner Kuehn steal and give Malta the first lead of their strong 17-9 run in the second. It was nearly a 17-6 run before Harlem's Corbin Brookie put up a miraculous heave out of his left pocket that sank as the clock hit zero. The halftime score was 26-19.

After the halftime break, Malta stayed aggressive playing strong defense that forced several turnovers. They would again outscore Harlem 16-11, making the end of the third quarter score 42-30.

"We like to get up in their grills and cause disruption in our defense," Costin said.

Malta would stay the course in the fourth quarter, creating turnovers on inbound passes and cashing in on fast break opportunities. They outscored Harlem 20-11, giving them a final score of 62-41.

"That's our goal," Costin said. "We rebound and push the ball. Even if it's a made basket, we are pushing the ball, trying to get down the court and get a transition bucket."

Costin praised his team stating that everyone played well that night.

"We've got guys stepping up like they should so it's working out well," Costin said.

Costin also noted that the team worked on a few things during break including attacking the basket and zone defense.

Malta's JV squad defeated Harlem's JV 58-10. Jensen scored 18, while Kuehn added 14. Malta's C-Squad defeated Harlem's C Squad 31-10 led by Tanner Smith who scored 13.

Malta was pitted against a couple of tough teams in Roundup and Rocky Boy last weekend but came out victorious against both. When asked about how they would beat the two teams, Jensen seemed sure about the approach.

"I think we just have to play as a team, be intense and play with each other," Jensen said.

In Malta's win over Roundup, Costin scored 19. Matthews added 14 points.