It was no surprise when Blaine got dominated by the Pirates on Thursday night. The Bengals’ biggest challenge of the season came, where they squared off against the conference leading Pirates.  Park Center, also the #2 ranked team in the state, easily handled Blaine, 85-65.

The first period clearly showed that Blaine was adrenaline pumped and ready for a challenge. Matt Barthels(11) from Blaine, made the first shot and ended up scoring the most points for Blaine in the first half. Along with him Jerome Egbujor(12) helped keep the score close so by half time the score was 35-26, Park Center winning.

Park Center’s Jake Tanner(12), who’s only 5’10 scored the first three pointer of the night, along with many other shots.

Park Center’s star point guard, Quinton Hooker(12) recently signed to play collegiate basketball at the University in North Dakota in September, scored 24 points and collected five assists. Hooker showed the rare, valuable, and intangible ability to make the players around him better.

The standout performance of the night for Blaine came from senior Justin Mbanfo. He put in 11 points and snatched 13 rebounds for a rare double-double in high school basketball.

So, what happened? Blaine fans at the game would be quick to point their fingers at the questionable officiating. But, more realistically, Blaine can blame themselves. The Bengals committed 25 turnovers — more than one every two minutes — which is a cardinal sin when you are matched up against an elite team like Park Center.

Blaine suffers their third straight loss, and are now 5-6 this season.

Next up for the Bengals is an away game at East Ridge on Saturday.

* All player and team stats are unofficial recordings