A promising start turned sour for the Albert Lea boys’ basketball team.

The Tigers led 11-10 after the opening tip, but Waseca responded Monday with a 21-0 run en route to a 79-45 Bluejays win.

“We came out early and did a good job of getting the ball inside, but then we came up empty on a couple of possessions,” said Albert Lea coach Lucas Kreuscher. “We can’t let that affect us on the defensive end.”

Waseca led 57-25 at halftime and outscored the Tigers 22-20 in the second half.

Dedoch Chan led the Tigers with 19 points, six rebounds and an assist. Jared Schmidt had 10 points, and Jack Buendorf added five.

Next, Albert Lea (0-9 overall, 0-7 Big Nine Conference) will play at 7:15 p.m. Tuesday at Stewartville (3-4 overall, 3-3 Hiawatha Valley League). Stewartville started 2-0, lost four straight and snapped the streak Friday with a 61-53 win at Kasson-Mantorville.