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POSITIVE STEP

Messenger photo by Britt Kudla Fort Dodge's Drake Callon goes to the basket on Monday against Mason City in the Dodger gym. For more photos, please visit CU.messengernews.net

The Fort Dodge boys put forth the kind of intensity head coach Tom Daniel has wanted to see this season.

However, a slow start coupled with missed free throws and early turnovers kept the Dodgers from snapping their losing skid, as Mason City escaped with a 72-64 victory here Monday night.

Fort Dodge (1-13 overall, 0-7 in CIML Iowa Conference) missed 15 free throws and committed 13 turnovers, spoiling a 24-point, 10-rebound effort from senior Tysen Kershaw.

Dayson Clayton added 16 points and Drake Callon chipped in seven points and five rebounds off the bench.

For the Mohawks (5-8, 2-5), Jeff Skogen and Carter Thomas each scored 16, with Corey Miner adding 15 and Avery Mellman 12. Mason City also struggled at the line, missing 12 of 24.

“The effort was definitely there,” Daniel said. “We’ve struggled at times this year with that, but we are still making too many mistakes. You can’t have a slow start and expect to come all the way back. We battled, and Tysen really had a great game and showed what he’s capable of, but we need that each and every night.

“I thought Dayson gave us a good game, Drake really stepped up off the bench, and we had some good minutes from several others. We just need to figure out what lineups work and which ones don’t.”

Mason City went on a 21-4 run from late in the first through early in the second. The Mohawks would lead by as many as 19 in the opening half at 27-8 thanks to 10 points from Skogen and 10 missed FDSH shots at the line.

“If we make some of those early free throws, it takes the pressure off what we had to rally from in the second half,” Daniel said. “And we just gave (Mason City) too many easy looks.”

Thomas was a perfect 6-for-6 from the field in the game, Skogen hit 8 of 13 and Miner knocked down three 3-pointers. But as Kershaw and Clayton led the comeback, the pressure got to the Mohawks.

Kershaw scored seven in the third before breaking out with a 12-point fourth quarter as the Dodgers cut the deficit to as little as four. Clayton had eight of his points in the second half.

Mason City, meanwhile, missed 10 free throws over the final 16 minutes and committed seven turnovers.

“We just couldn’t get over that hump, which has been our problem all year,” Daniel said. “We play well at times and don’t at others. But we’ll keep working and get it corrected.”

Fort Dodge will have a quick turnaround, as they host Johnston Tuesday night.

MASON CITY 72, FORT DODGE 64

Fort Dodge — Asle Thorson 1-2 1-3 3, Tysen Kershaw 8-18 6-6 24, Monterius Altman-Abrams 2-7 0-0 5, Dayson Clayton 5-8 4-12 16, James Daniel 0-0 0-0 0, Drake Callon 3-5 1-4 7, Brycen Bell 1-4 0-0 2, D’Arien Callahan 0-1 1-2 1, Nolan Daniel 0-0 0-0 0, Ashton Hage 1-1 2-3 4, Bradley Vodraska 0-0 0-0 0, Carson Peterson 1-2 0-0 2, Javion Jondle 0-0 0-0 0. Totals: 22-46 15-30 64.

Mason City — Carter Thomas 6-6 4-10 16, Jeff Skogen 8-13 0-2 16, Corey Miner 5-11 2-4 15, Austin Richardson 3-6 0-0 6, Avery Mellman 3-13 6-8 12, Brandon Shipman 3-4 0-0 7, Jess Cornick 0-0 0-0 0, Isaiah Washington 0-0 0-0 0. Totals: 28-53 12-24 72.

Quarter scores: Mason City led 19-7, 33-21, 49-42. Three-point goals: Fort Dodge 5-16 (Kershaw 2, Altman-Abrams, Clayton 2), Mason City 4-10 (Miner 3, Shipman). Total rebounds: Fort Dodge 30, Mason City 34. Steals: Fort Dodge 9, Mason City 7. Blocked shots: Fort Dodge 1. Turnovers: Fort Dodge 13, Mason City 14.

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