Mustangs cruise past Indians

Taking a 19-0 run in the first quarter, the Mustangs ran away with a 60-31 victory over the Poplar Indians in their last game of 2019 in Malta, on Saturday, December 21.

The team's opening run which ended with three minutes to go in the first quarter was a contrast to how the team started against the Harlem Wildcats one night prior, in which the team was outscored 17-9 in the first quarter and eventually lost 69-59.

"It was mainly about having a solid effort," Malta sophomore Connor Tuss said. "Yesterday we started off slow and couldn't get back into the game but today we had a way better effort from start to finish."

The Mustangs were efficient on both ends of the floor in the opening minutes their 2019 home opener against Poplar, turning Poplar over on their first two possessions. Malta's first bucket was a steal that led to Ben Costin knocking down his first trey attempt.

"I was hitting them throughout warmups, so I felt good and hit that one," Costin said.

The Mustangs were led in the win by Tuss, who scored 17 points. Kooper Oxarart had 11 points. Costin had eight points.

Though the Mustangs were off to a hot start in the game, Poplar's defense eventually clamped down, allowing only nine points in the second quarter. Malta only allowed eight points during that period, giving the game a halftime score of 32-10.

"We just had to stay in front and contest as many shots as we could," Tuss said.

After halftime entertainment from the Malta M-ette Cheerleaders and the Holiday Friends, Malta found it's offense again, outscoring Poplar 23-6. Malta's defense only allowed a pair of deep treys.

Poplar's starters outscored Malta's reserves 15-5 in the fourth.

In Malta's 69-59 loss to Harlem on Friday, December 20, in Harlem, Malta was led by Kooper Oxarart who had 18 points. Oxarart had five treys. Tanner Smith had 13 points, and Rex Williamson had eight.

As the Mustangs head into the break, they know that there are a few things they need to work on, the most obvious was seen during the game against Harlem.

"We are definitely going to work on some of the pressure stuff that kind of rattled us against Harlem," Costin said. "We need to work on our patience because it's not really our game to be running up and down the court; we need to value all of those possessions. All of the little things will work themselves out as practice goes on if we keep working hard."

Malta is scheduled to open their new year against the Wolves in Wolf Point on Friday, January 3. They will then face the Havre Blue Ponies in Malta on Saturday, January 4.