CLARK – Points were few and far between for Aberdeen Roncalli Thursday night.

The Cavaliers were caught up in a defensive storm from Clark-Willow Lake as the Cyclones claimed a 60-29 Northeast Conference boys’ basketball victory.

“They ran that 2-3 (zone) and really hadn’t run it a lot so far this year,” said Roncalli coach Dan Gallagher. “We didn’t work against it a ton and it was really affective against. We just didn’t have great answers, especially for how long and lengthy they are.”

Roncalli trailed 13-11 late in the opening quarter when CWL began to take control. The hosts scored 10 answered points to build a double-digit cushion and steadily pulled away as the game went on.

The size of the Cyclones caused Roncalli issues all night. One case in point was a play that involved 6-foot-7 freshman Sully Felberg.

“There was one possession, I remember, I looked over at our assistant. I don’t know how you defend that, because they threw a perfect over the top pass,” Gallagher said. “We jumped in the front and in the back and somehow he still came down with it. He didn’t jump, just put the ball over his head and was able to put in a 10-foot jumper. There’s no answer to that.”

Clark-Willow Lake placed four players in double-figure scoring. Emmerson Larson scored 15 points, Chris Bevers followed with 14, and Bo Begeman and Felberg each contributed 14.

However, it was the Cyclones’ defense that proved to be the biggest factor in the contest.

“They played really well defensively against us. … When they’re that athletic and that long,” Gallagher said, “it makes for even more problems.”

Roncalli was led by Jesse Hernandez with eight points.

The Cavaliers, 4-6 on the season, won’t have time to dwell on the setback, as they head to Mellette tonight to take on Northwestern.

“We just have to bounce back, move on,” Gallagher said, “that’s kind of a good thing.”

ABERDEEN RONCALLI (4-6): Jesse Hernandez 3 0-0 8, Sam Franks 1 0-2 2, Brody Weinmeister 2 0-2 5, Parker Grieben 1 0-0 2, Sam Larson 1 0-0 3, Bryson Olson 1 3-4 5, Cam Olson 2 0-0 4. Totals 11-44 3-8 29.

CLARK-WILLOW LAKE (9-2): Emmerson Larson 4 6-8 15, Chris Bevers 6 0-0 14, Bo Begeman 3 5-6 12, Griffin Musser 1 0-0 2, Sully Felberg 5 2-2 12, Joey Ries 1 2-2 4, Will Hovde 0 0-2 0, Zach Ambrose 0 1-2 1. Totals 20-57 16-22 60.

Aberdeen Roncalli 11 18 23 29

Clark-Willow Lake 18 32 47 60

3-point field goals – Hernandez 2, Weinmeister, Larson; Larson, Bevers 2, Begeman. Total fouls – Aberdeen Roncalli 18; Clark-Willow Lake 12. Rebounds – Aberdeen Roncalli 36 (Franks 5); Clark-Willow Lake 38 (Begeman 11, Felberg 7). Turnovers – Aberdeen Roncalli 18; Clark-Willow Lake 9. Steals – Aberdeen Roncalli 7 (Franks 3, Hernandez 2); Clark-Willow Lake 15 (Bevers 4, Begeman 3).