The 12-point margin proved to be the difference, as the Bulldogs lost 76-64.
The Bulldogs came out hot against the Thunder, second in the WCC North. J.T. Koehn made three treys to give the Bulldogs their first nine points. The Bulldogs led 20-14 after the first quarter.
In the first half, the Bulldogs made 15 of 25 shots from the floor. In the second half, they managed just nine of 29, and just two of 12 in the third quarter.
Meanwhile, the Thunder, especially junior guard Jonathan Young, heated up after the intermission. LPGE made 11 of 18 three-pointers for the game, including five of seven in the third.
Young made six three-pointers and led LPGE with 22 points. LPGE's starting posts, Matt Seigle, a 6' 7Ó sophomore, and Troy Tschida, a 6' 6Ó junior, combined for 37 points.
The Bulldogs made nine three-pointers themselves: three by Koehn, three by Luke Trees, two by Ryan Wall, and one by Andy Jones.
Wall led the Bulldogs with 22 points and 10 rebounds. Trees had 17 points and five assists, and Koehn finished with 14 points and four assists.
| LPGE-- | 14 | 18 | 24 | 20 | - 76 |
| Paynesville-- | 20 | 18 | 6 | 20 | - 64 |
Litchfield 110
Paynesville 30
The outcome was never in doubt when the Bulldogs traveled to a packed gymnasium in Litchfield to face the undefeated Dragons Friday night. The Dragons scored the first 30 points of the game, led 40-5 at the first quarter break, and 62-15 at halftime on their way to a 110-30 victory.
The Dragons' pressure defense, pinpoint passing, and good outside shooting proved too much for the Bulldogs. The win was the Dragons' 36th consecutive conference victory. They are rated first in the state in the Class AA polls.
Mike Patten, a junior guard, led the Dragons with 28 points, including 26 in the first half. He made all six of his three-pointers before the break. Senior forward Brandon Van Liere added 23 points for Litchfield, mostly on fast-break lay-ups.
The Bulldogs, now 1-9 in the WCC, shot 10 of 46 from the floor, just 22 percent. They were led in scoring by senior post Ryan Wall (pictured at left rebounding against LPGE) with 10. He added 13 rebounds, and junior guard Logan Louis had 10 rebounds.
Senior guard Luke Trees sprained his ankle in practice on Thursday and was on crutches at Friday's game.
The Bulldogs traveled to New London-Spicer last night to face the Wildcats. Next Tuesday, Feb. 22, they will travel to Atwater-Cosmos-Grove City for another nonconference road game.
| Paynesville-- | 5 | 10 | 8 | 7 | - 30 |
| Litchfield-- | 40 | 22 | 22 | 26 | - 110 |