Glen Strandberg
Sports Editor

If the boys basketball team could have pulled off two impressive road wins last week, the rest of the Suburban East Conference would have been looking over its shoulder, wondering when they had to meet Forest Lake.

After making Cretin-Derham Hall (13-6, 8-2) earn its 67-58 victory on Tuesday, Jan. 30, the Rangers dealt a little payback to Mounds View last Friday, with a 59-52 win over the Mustangs.

The split might not have the rest of the SEC checking the rearview mirror in fear, but the way Forest Lake is coming on, the other teams should be concerned.

Mounds View (12-6, 7-3) head coach head coach Ziggy Kauls said he noticed a difference in the Rangers' play when comparing it to the Mustang's win in December, and he feels Forest Lake is one of the wild cards that could make life interesting in both the conference and the section.

Since hanging with No. 3 ranked Woodbury in an early January loss, Forest Lake has moved up the conference standings, knocking off two teams, Stillwater and Mounds View, who reside above them in the SEC.

Against the Mustangs, just like in previous games, when the Rangers spread it around, the night generally ends in their favor.

Forest Lake was up by six at the half, never let the Mustangs make a significant move and ended up with the 59-52 win.

"We wanted to play ahead and not let them control the clock," head coach Dan Cremisino said. "We went ahead 13-11 and never trailed again. I thought our kids battled and fought the whole 36 minutes."

Aaron Jacobs was the leading scorer with 15 points (eight rebounds), while five of his teammates scored at least seven: Josh Williams fired in 10 points, Ryan Brown wheeled and dealed for nine, and Matt Hansmann, Drew Cremisino and Brandon Phelps each had seven points.

When the Rangers traveled to Cretin, the game couldn't have started any better for Forest Lake. They scored off the opening tip and were up 29-19 at one point as the Raiders had turnover after turnover and also had trouble slowing down the Ranger offense.

But just when it looked like Cretin might implode, they suddenly righted themselves, made a few steals and closed the 10-point gap in a hurry. The score was 31-31 at the end of the first half.

The Raider momentum carried over after the break, and now it was Forest Lake who was doing the scrambling.

Once Cretin built a small lead they started to press and trap on defense, which led to more easy baskets for the likes of Michael Floyd, free throws for John Nance and multiple baskets down low for Broderick Binns.

The Rangers pulled ahead 48-46, but that would be their last lead

"They made a run that we could not answer, but I thought we played them tough and had a good chance to win until the last minute or two," Cremisino shared.

Jacobs' 16 points and seven rebounds led Forest Lake, and Drew Cremisino reached double figures in points with 11. Brown and Phelps each had nine and Josh Williams picked up eight points.

The boys have two home games coming up, with Hastings on Friday night, and first-place Woodbury in Forest Lake on Tuesday, Feb. 13.

"They're starting to get ready for the playoffs," Woodbury head coach Scott Swansson said of the Rangers. "They seem to get better and better and better as the year goes on here. We need to play our best game when we come up their Tuesday night."

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