BLUE EARTH — The Worthington Trojans were hoping to be able to start the Section 2AAA boys basketball tournament on a winning note Friday night. But that was not to be, as host Blue Earth Area came away with a 73-66 victory.
Kaleb Knothe scored 18 points with nine rebounds for Worthington and Jacari Swinea added 17 points. Andrew Mulder had 13 points and Abagotte Opiew had 10. Marenono Opiew contributed six rebounds.
Worthington led 33-24 at halftime but was outscored 49-33 in the second half. Head coach CJ Nelson said his team's shooting fell off in the second half and the Trojans simply didn't defend well enough.
"We kind of settled for some shots instead of attacking the basket. They did a better job of defending us," he said.
WHS, now 7-18 and eighth-seeded in the section tournament, will travel to play top-seeded Mankato East on Tuesday.
"We've gotta come back on Monday and be ready to play for the biggest game of our year," Nelson said.
Worthington 33 66
Blue Earth Area 24 73
