Ellenburg propels Bernie boys basketball team past Woodland

MARBLE HILL, Mo. -- There wasn't much that could stop Caleb Ellenburg on Tuesday night.

The Bernie senior was near perfect from the field, where he finished the game 10 of 13 (77 percent) with 23 points, including 20 in the first half of a 60-51 victory over Woodland in a Stoddard County Conference game at Woodland High School.

"I just wanted to get out to a quick start," Ellenburg said. "I knew we were on their floor, and I knew they were up for the game.

"I was just wanting to get a good conference win."

The Cardinals (5-1) fell behind early and trailed by as many as nine points in the first quarter.

However, Evan Grindstaff drained a 3-pointer from the top right side of the arc to cap a 10-4 run and cut Bernie's lead to 17-14 with 32 seconds remaining in the first quarter.

"We had our game plan. Our game plan every game is to improve ourselves," Woodland coach Logan Nutt said. "We knew about them. We know what they do. They came out, and things were going their way.

"I thought our kids fought back early and responded well, but the ball just wasn't bouncing our way tonight. It was a great wake-up call for us because we still understand and know that we're a good team and can do some damage, but we now understand that we can be beat at any time."

Ellenburg was the difference for the Mules (5-1) in the first half. He was a perfect 6 of 6 from the field in the first quarter and knocked down 3 of 5 (60 percent) in the second quarter, including a jumper that hit the backboard and rattled through the basket in the final seconds of the half.

Bernie held a 36-28 advantage heading into the break.

"We need Caleb to be solid for us offensively every night, and he's really been doing a great job for us," Bernie coach Brad Botsch said. "It's important for us to get out to a solid lead, and Caleb really got us going there in the first half."

The Mules controlled the tempo in the second half and led 41-32 at the end of a low-scoring third period.

"We knew these guys would be ready to go," Botsch said. "[Woodland is] a nice team, and they've got a lot of things to be happy about. They're a good group. We knew they'd be ready to bring it, and I thought it was really important for us to get out to a fast start."

Each team knocked down a basket in the opening minutes of the fourth quarter before Garret Reynolds' 3-pointer missed the mark but was hauled in by Zach Beel, whose putback fell through and cut Bernie's lead to seven points with 4:50 to go in the game.

Beel led the Cardinals in scoring with 17 points on 8 of 14 (57 percent) from the field.

"He brings it every day," Nutt said about Beel. "He's going to go full speed until his tongue is hanging out. I feel like we didn't give him the ball in the post enough, and that's on me. I've got to figure out ways to involve him more because the majority of his points are off the defense having to help or the offense getting rebounds, rather than just getting it in a half-court offense."

Woodland's scoring opportunities were limited in the second half. The Cardinals committed seven of their 11 turnovers in the third and fourth quarters.

"I have seen it in several games, and luckily it hasn't hurt us too bad, but it's something we need to continue to work on and emphasize," Nutt said about the turnovers. "We need to limit turnovers. At any time of the game, that ball is precious. Every possession matters. High school kids are young, and it will take time to understand that."

The Mules were able to close out the game in the final period, as Matt Vernon and Brandon Sparks were a combined 14 of 19 (74 percent) from the charity stripe. As a team, Bernie finished the game 20 of 31 (65 percent) from the free-throw line.

"Brandon shoots them really well, and Matt's capable. Once we get to where we can shoot free throws really well and have a lead with our ball-handling, it's tough for teams to come out and double-team us because our guards are pretty good at drawing fouls, and we're also pretty good at seeing the open man," Botsch said. "I thought we missed it some tonight. When they came out and put pressure on us, I thought we had some open looks, but we'll get better at that. I think our free-throw shooting will continue to evolve because these kids are hard workers."

Reynolds finished 6 of 15 (40 percent) from the field for 13 points, while Woodland shot 23 of 52 (44 percent) as a team.

"We know what good shots and bad shots are. We practice it every day," Nutt said. "We know our defensive strategy and our offensive strategy. When there are time-outs and breaks, I just give them a reminder to take better shots. *... Our guys are good. They were just off a little bit. When they get going, they can shoot pretty good."

Vernon contributed 14 points for the Mules, while Sparks added 13. Bernie finished 17 of 33 (52 percent) from field-goal range.

Woodland returns to action against host Kelly at 7:30 p.m. Friday.

"At the end of the day, we just want to make sure we're improving in all these areas," Nutt said. "We want to be better the next game than we were tonight."

Bernie won the JV contest 45-39.

Bernie 19 17 5 19 -- 60

Woodland 14 14 4 19 -- 51

Bernie (60) -- Caleb Ellenburg 23, Matt Vernon 14, Brandon Sparks 13, Devin Trammell 7, Gavin Smith 3. FG 17-33, FT 20-31, 12 F. (3-pointers: Ellenburg 3, Vernon 2, Sparks 1. Fouled out: None)

Woodland (51) -- Zach Beel 17, Garret Reynolds 13, Cole Schlief 7, Evan Grindstaff 6, Devon Gramlisch 6, Michael McCormick 2. FG 23-52, FT 2-7, 24 F. (3-pointers: Grindstaff 2, Beel 1. Fouled out: Grindstaff, Schlief, Beel)