Back in April, when new head coach Matt Addington met the Albert Lea High School boys’ basketball players for the first time, he explained his philosophy for turning around the program.

Saturday, February 09, 2002

Back in April, when new head coach Matt Addington met the Albert Lea High School boys’ basketball players for the first time, he explained his philosophy for turning around the program.

&uot;I told them we measure success not in wins and losses, but with progress,&uot; said Addington.

The Tigers have been successful in both aspects.

The locals completed a regular-season sweep of Faribault with a 63-51 decision at ALHS Friday night, improving to 9-8 overall and 7-6 in the Big Nine. The nine wins is the most for the Tigers since the 1991-92 season.

&uot;The kids are really buying into the things we’re trying to teach,&uot; said Addington. &uot;They’re working hard at it. When you do that, it will translate into good things on most nights.&uot;

On Friday night, the Tigers survived a physical game that saw them attempt 45 free throws and make 31. They were 15-for-29 from the floor, including 2-for-9 on three-point shots. Faribault was 16-for-47 overall from the field, 3-for-9 on threes, and 10-for-21 on free throws. Albert Lea outrebounded Faribault 33-23.

The Tigers took a quick 8-2 lead and controlled the pace for most of the first quarter, though the Falcons cut it to 15-9 with four points in the final minute. Faribault pulled within 22-17 midway through the second period but got no closer. It was 29-22 at halftime.

The lead didn’t lost long in the third quarter as the Tigers were called for three fouls and Faribault scored seven points in the first 1:36 to tie it at 29. The Tigers settled down after an Addington time out and a Faribault technical foul and took a 44-39 advantage into the fourth quarter.

The Falcons refused to fold and, at the midway point, were within 51-41, but the Tigers pulled away with free throws down the stretch, including three of four by Kyle Schrad after a technical foul on the Falcon bench.

Josh Kasper totaled 21 points, including three three-pointers, to lead the Tigers in scoring. Tyler Young had a strong all-around game coming off an injury, netting 18 points and 14 rebounds. Ben Woodside had 14 points, five assists and three steals. Tim Benesch had seven rebounds, Schrad five assists.

Addington again credited the Tigers’ reserves.

&uot;We have a lot of kids filling their roles, doing things that don’t show up in the stat sheet,&uot; said Addington. &uot;Guys like (Jay) Link, (Jason) Kuipers, (Scott) Hoeg, (Corey) Bowman. There are so many guys. Guys like Paul Marlin, who don’t even suit up, that are out there busting it every day in practice making these guys better. Everyone involved with the program has made a contribution.&uot;

The Tigers are on the road Tuesday with a Big Nine game at Rochester Mayo.