Mike Kraft/MDN Bishop Ryan’s Gryphen Leier-Wangler goes up for a layup against TGU’s Sage Hanson during the first half of a District 6 basketball game at Bishop Ryan on Tuesday, Jan. 27.

When things don’t go according to plan, instead of getting frustrated, sometimes all you can do is laugh it off.

After scoring a season-low 11 points in the first half, that’s what the Bishop Ryan boys basketball team did in the locker room.

Laughter proved to be the best medicine and a cure for the offensive woes to a degree, as the Lions shrugged off a slow start and nearly tripled their scoring output in the second half en route to a 43-36 victory over TGU in a District 6 matchup on Tuesday, Jan. 27. The Lions’ 43 points was their lowest total of the season, but the 36 points they allowed was their second-best defensive effort.

“We kind of just shake it off,” Bishop Ryan coach Broderick Bosch said. As coaches, we just kind of laughed it off at halftime. You prepare so much and scout a team so much and then you get to it and it doesn’t feel the same as you think it’s going to be and we were just kind of stuck in that mindset and we had to get out of it. We played really good defense and then we just got back to playing basketball on offense.”

The offensive game plan may not have come to fruition, but Bishop Ryan’s defensive game plan on TGU’s Sage Hanson was executed to near perfection. The Lions constantly double and triple teamed the 6-foot-9 senior forward and UND commit, limiting him to just four points through the first three quarters.

The Lions(10-2 overall, 4-1 District 6) kept Hanson off the scoreboard in the second and third quarters. He scored late in the first quarter and wouldn’t hit another shot until 3:15 into the final stanza. Hanson finished with a team-high 16 points, but the majority came with Bishop Ryan in control of the game.

“Playing defense on Sage is just amazing,” Bishop Ryan’s Peyton Seay said. “He’s such a good player, but we held him really well today. The offense was struggling, but we figured it out in the end.”

Jack Passa drew the primary defensive assignment on Hanson due in part to his high vertical ability. He was able to knock away lob passes inside to Hanson. In the moments where Hanson was able to catch the ball down low, he was greeted by two or three Bishop Ryan defenders.

“Sage is one of the best players in the state,” Bosch said. “You try to slow him down. There’s never a perfect plan to stop him, only slow him down and we did a tremendous job. Jack Passa is a high-flying player. He was able to get in front and any pass or lob, Jack can get up there and tip those away. And then our help-side was awesome.”

Points were a rarity in the first quarter, as both teams struggled to find any rhythm offensively. Hanson broke the scoreless tie more than three minutes into the game on an emphatic dunk, but that was the apex of excitement in the opening half.

The Lions went nearly five minutes without a basket when Gryphen Leier-Wangler hit their only shot of the first quarter and the only 3-pointer of the first half. Leier-Wangler again ended Bishop Ryan’s scoring drought to open a quarter, knocking down a jumper with 5:35 left in the half.

TGU (7-5, 4-2) led 6-3 at the end of the first quarter and 12-11 at halftime. The two teams combined for 11 field goals in the opening half.

The Lions found their scoring touch coming out of the locker room and continued to lock down on defense. Peyton Seay jumpstarted a 12-0 run to begin the third quarter, hitting one of his two 3-pointers to give the Lions their first lead of the contest. Leier-Wangler, Izaac Strandlien and Hayden Seay contributed to the run, giving Bishop Ryan a 23-12 lead.

“We get a spark and everyone kind of connects and then we get a few runs and we keep going. It all just comes together when we get that team connection,” Leier-Wangler said. “We found our rhythm. We got some good passes, some good shots, some good cuts, some stops on defense and it all just builds and builds and it helps us go on good runs.”

TGU’s Ethen Zimmerman got the Titans on the board for the first time in the second half after going the first 5:25 without a point. The Titans managed just four points in the third quarter and started the second half with four turnovers on their first four possessions.

“They had a good defensive game plan trying to keep Hanson from catching the ball knowing we start our offense with him catching the ball,” TGU coach Billy Seright said. “Our other guys are pretty inexperienced and they are kind of learning their way through the season. The turnovers came from unfamiliarity with what they were doing defensively and we’re going to face that all year because Sage is such a unique individual and teams are going to try unique things to stop him.”

The Lions led by as many as 13 with 4:45 remaining in the fourth quarter. The Titans attempted to make one final run, with Hanson scoring the team’s final eight points down the stretch, but they never got closer than five points at 40-35.

Peyton Seay salted the game away at the free-throw line, going 5-for-6 in the final minutes.

“I love shooting free throws,” Peyton Seay said. “They’re fun to shoot and they are easy.”

Peyton Seay finished with 15 points – 13 coming in the second half. Leier Wangler and Hayden Seay also finished in double figures with 10 points each.

The Lions travel to play Glenburn on Friday, Jan. 30, while the Titans go to Velva on Thursday, Jan. 29.