Ryan Ladika/MDN Pictured from Tuesday evening, Zach Hendrickson dribbles into the Knights’ offensive end of the floor.

Faced with a quick turnaround from its Tuesday Hoopster Classic matchup, the Our Redeemer’s Christian School Knights returned to action Wednesday night for its appearance in the Dale Brown Classic hosted once again at the Minot State Dome.

The Knights’ double-digit first quarter proved a better start than their previous matchup, but Our Redeemer’s could not finish a strong start to the second half in its 58-54 loss to the North Star Bearcats.

The relative youth of the team coupled with the lack of meaningful practice opportunities brought on by sickness and the holiday season has played a significant role in the Knights’ 2-2 beginning to the new campaign, head coach Brock Teets said.

The second-year Our Redeemer’s coach is not yet worried, though, with the season still so young. Teets is confident that constant improvement in the “little things” that will come with time and experience will help right the ship.

The Knights turned to their 6’5″ center Kyle Drovdal early in their Wednesday tilt, as the senior scored each of his team’s first six points in the paint to match the Bearcats’ six from Parker Simon and Drew Nicholas.

Payten Lindbo drained the Knights’ first triple of the evening and Coltan Francis followed with his team’s second to extend the Our Redeemer’s lead to 12-8, but consecutive Knights fouls paved way for a 6-0 North Star run that gave the Bearcats its two-point lead after one.

Our Redeemer’s failed to find the scoreboard for more than three minutes in the second frame but finally broke through the North Star defensive efforts with a Jared Brown jumpshot with 4:17 to play in the half.

The shot cut the Bearcats’ lead to 21-14 after Simon added his first make from beyond the arc, and Zach Hendrickson’s first triple would ignite the Knights’ offense in response.

Our Redeemer’s rattled off a 13-5 run to end the first half, highlighted by three straight three-point shots from Hendrickson and Collin Swenson. The stretch almost eliminated the Bearcats’ lead and put the Knights behind by just one entering the second 16 minutes of play.

Garrett Westlind and Dane Hagler added four quick points for the Bearcats out of the ahlftime break, but a sudden feel from beyond the arc kickstarted the Our Redeemer’s offense once more.

Hendrickson, Francis and Swenson each added a triple on a 12-2 stretch that pushed the Knights out to a 39-34 lead, and six more from Hendrickson later aided Our Redeemer’s in opening up a 49-43 advantage in the opening minutes of the fourth quarter.

Brett Dilley proved to be the Knights’ undoing, though, as the sophomore center tallied eight points to contribute to a 15-3 game-clinching run. Dilley (10 points) was one of four Bearcats to reach double digits, joining Hagler (12), Simon (11) and Nicholas (10). Hendrickson’s 22 points marked a game-high, and Swenson also notched nine for the Knights.

Our Redeemer’s will look to snap its two-game skid Jan. 6 against Stanley, while North Star will face Lakota High School Jan. 3.