A strong closing surge wasn’t quite enough to put Aberdeen Central over the top Saturday afternoon.

The Golden Eagles erased most of a 17-point fourth-quarter deficit before falling to Rapid City Stevens 50-40 in non-conference boys’ basketball at Golden Eagles Arena.

As was the case in a loss on Friday, turnovers continued to be an issue for Central.

“You can’t have, what is it, 53 turnovers in two games, and we had opportunities, still, with all those turnovers,” said Central coach Brent Norberg. “Just a lot of difficult turnovers that just made it difficult for us to get into rhythm and be able to score the basketball.”

One of those opportunities came late in the fourth quarter as time was winding down. The Golden Eagles, down 41-24 with 4:39 left in the game, and got to within 41-36 with 1:11 remaining after two free throws from Brendan Phillips.

The Golden Eagles then grabbed a quick steal with a chance to make it a one-possession game in the final minute. However, a missed pass from the Golden Eagles gave the ball back to Stevens on a backcourt violation with 53.8 seconds remaining.

“We had the ball, down five is all, and we throw it in the back court,” said Norberg.

That sequence switched the momentum for the final time.

“We were feeling it, and then we had a mistake at the line here, and then we lost it,” said Central’s Colby Dauwen.

The senior was able to keep the Golden Eagles within striking distance as he finished physically around the rim twice.

“Got us down to five, and you know, it really helped us,” Dauwen said. “I think getting to the rim is more of my style, so yeah, I try to be a more physical player.”

The Golden Eagles jumped out to an early 8-2 lead in the first couple minutes. Stevens rallied back to level the score at 10-10 by the end of the period.

The Raiders scored off a Central turnover to start the second quarter, a common theme throughout the contest.

“Our turnovers, unfortunately a lot of them are leading to layups on the other end and that’s what kills us,” Norberg said. “Turnovers are bad enough, but when they lead to points, it’s a double whammy.”

The Golden Eagles also had an issue with second-chance points. As case in point came in the closing seconds of the opening half when the Raiders had three chances under 12 seconds, with the last shot falling at the buzzer to extend their lead 20-14.

“The play right before the half was big. There’s a couple times where you know, we had them stopped and they get a tip in,” Norberg said. “They’re very athletic, they’re very big, they’re very physical, very strong. We had times where if one guy didn’t block out, we paid for it.”

Stevens built on its lead in the third quarter, outscoring Central 15-9. The Raiders then scored six of the first seven points to start the final quarter to open their 17-point advantage.

Central’s defense then stepped up and held the Raiders scoreless for three and a half minutes, while the Golden Eagles scored 12 unanswered points.

“Our kids battled back,” Norberg said. “They could have folded up, but defensively, we scrapped, clawed, created some turnovers.”

Central finished with nine steals in the contest, two coming from Dauwen, who put pressure on the ball all game.

“I always try to see myself as a defensive player,” Dauwen. “So, I mean, that’s what I bring to the team and I’m going to keep bringing that.”

Despite the setback, Norberg was pleased that his players never gave up.

“We just kind of kept playing. I kept telling them all day, just keep playing, keep playing. It’s hard for high school kids to keep playing when things are going that poorly,” Norberg said. “And so, I give a lot of credit to stay physically and mentally into it.”

The Golden Eagles, 0-2, are on the road this weekend, playing at Spearfish on Friday, and at Sturgis on Saturday.

RAPID CITY STEVENS (1-1): Minkah Hawley 5 1-4 11, Dayler Segrist 3 8-8 16, Kaelem Brooks 3 0-5 6, Dylan Szymonski 3 0-0 6, Seth Paugh 1 2-2 4, Dalton Szymonski 1 0-0 2, Jess Christensen 2 1-5 5. Totals 18 12-24 50.

ABERDEEN CENTRAL (0-2): Michael Dutenhoffer 1 0-0 3, Brendan Phillips 7 4-5 20, Christian Palmer 2 2-2 7, Colby Dauwen 3 1-1 7, Jacob Weishaar 0 1-2 1, Jack Bertsch 1 0-0 2. Totals 14 8-10 40.

Rapid City Stevens 10 20 35 50

Aberdeen Central 10 24 33 40

3-point field goals – Segrist 2; Dutenhoffer, Phillips 2, Palmer. Total fouls – Rapid City Stevens 12; Aberdeen Central 22. Rebounds – Rapid City Stevens 27 (Brooks 6); Aberdeen Central 24 (Phillips 7, Weishaar 7). Turnovers – Rapid City Stevens 18; Aberdeen Central 26. Assists – Rapid City Stevens 11 (Segrist 5); Aberdeen Central 5 (Dauwen 2). Steals – Rapid City Stevens 13 (Segrist 3); Aberdeen Central 9 (Turner Bergan 3).