FRIDLEY TOOK ON ROBBINSDALE COOPER IN A BOYS BASKETBALL GAME

On Feb. 6 Fridley and Robbinsdale Cooper went up against each other in a North Suburban Conference basketball game.

Fridley pushed the ball down the floor as they looked to get layups in transition.

Neither team took a lot of shots in the early going.

Cooper swung the ball around the three-point line as they were to take a lot of time off the clock.

Fridley called a timeout with 11:42 left in the first half. The score was Cooper 14, Fridley 9.

Cooper switched up between man-to-man and zone on the defense. They were able to confuse Fridley on the offensive end.

Cooper’s Brandon Robinson was able to attack the basket and was able to come away with layups.

Neither team went on a run. There were many ties and lead changes throughout the first half.

Cooper wasn’t afraid to take long three-point shots.

Fridley’s Tesse Pal took the ball hard to the basket on layups. He was not afraid of contact. Pal was able to make his layups.

Cooper’s Jacob Lindgren got hot from behind the three-point line late in the first half.  

At halftime the score was Cooper 39, Fridley 31.

As the second half got underway Fridley continued to swing the ball around the three-point line. They wanted to get everyone to touch the ball before looking to get the ball inside to Jonathan Conyers. Conyers took the ball hard to the basket from the low post.  

The score went back and forth throughout the second half. Neither team went on a run.  

Fridley’s Chaney Pal stepped up and was able to knock down mid-range jump shots. His teammates did a good job of getting him the ball in spots where he could make his shot.

Both teams played very well on the defensive end. Neither team gave up an uncontested shot.

Robinson continued to come up with nice mid-range jump shots late in the game.

The game came down to the wire.

Cooper’s Taron Pickford was fouled with 1.7 seconds left with the game tied at 58. He made both free throws.

Cooper came away with the 60-58 victory over Fridley.

The leading scorers for Fridley were Mulbah with 16, and Chaney Pal with 15 points.

The leading scorers for Cooper were Robinson with 16 points, Johnson with 15 points and Pickford with 11 points.