When the Craig Panthers boys basketball team last played Wrangell on Feb. 4, the Wolves won 85-30.
So to say that the Panthers showed improvement on Thursday at the Region V tournament would be an understatement.
Craig led for most of the first half and was tied with the Wolves at halftime before some hot shooting by Wrangell helped the Wolves pull away for a 68-41 win in an elimination game.
"We have a really young team, but we got great experience out of this," Craig coach Thomas Mills said. "Wrangell played great. They shot the lights out in the second half, like I knew they probably would. I wish them luck, and we'll be ready for next year."
Junior Bryant Holloway and sophomore Ayden Benolken combined for all 12 Craig points in the first quarter as the Panthers took a 12-9 lead into the first break.
After Wrangell briefly forged ahead in the second quarter, taking a 17-14 lead on a 3-pointer from Devon Campbell, the Panthers came right back to regain a 19-17 advantage on a 3-pointer from Benolken and a spinning drive down the lane for a layup by Holloway.
Benolken had 10 first-half points and finished with 12. Holloway had nine points in the first half and finished with 15 for Craig. Jayson Fowler added seven points.
"Bryan, he's a workhorse, same with Jayson Fowler and Ayden Benolken," Mills said. "They gave it everything they had, and played a really great first half. In the second half, Wrangell just outshot us big time. It was pretty impressive on their part."
Wrangell's Jacen Hay drained five 3-pointers in the second half, and Daniel Harrison added a pair of 3-pointers as the Wolves outscored Craig 47-20 in the second half.
Harrison finished with 21 points and Hay added 19 for Wrangell, which advances to meet Haines in another elimination game at 9:45 a.m. Friday.
The Wolves had five seniors in their lineup.
Craig has one senior, Sam Bass, and two juniors. The Panthers finished the year 4-16 and went 0-8 in conference play, but will have nearly the entire team returning next year along with an influx of incoming freshmen.
"We built on skill building with the younger guys we have," Mills said. "Our one senior, this was his first time playing since he was a freshman. We have two juniors that will be seniors next year, plus we had a whole lot of freshmen and sophomores, and another group coming up.
"Craig basketball looks good in the future," Mills added. "I'm excited for what is coming up here."