Area boys basketball roundup from Thursday evening

Hayfield Vikings junior Ethan Slaathaug piled up 28 points, four rebounds, five steals and five assists, but it was points five and six that were most important as they pushed Slaathaug to 1,000 points for his career in a 78-49 rout of Mabel/Canton Thursday night in Hayfield.

It was Senior Night in the last regular season home game for the Vikings, and senior Patrick Towey went out in style with a career-high 31 points to go along with five rebounds, five assists and three steals.  Isaac Matti added nine points and Lucas Hansen six for Hayfield, who led by seven at the half 34-27, but outscored the Cougars 44-22 in the second half to pull away for the win.  The Vikings were 12-2 on their home court for the regular season, and they return to action tonight in Faribault against Bethlehem Academy, with the varsity tip-off at 7:15 p.m.

It was also a special night for Blooming Prairie Awesome Blossom guard Kaden Thomas, as he scored 10 points in a Gopher Conference matchup in Wells against United South Central Thursday night to hit 1,000 points for his career in a 67-52 win.  Thomas became the second member of the Blossoms squad to go over 1,000 points this season as Gabe Hagen, who led Blooming Prairie with 25 points went over the 1,000 point plateau earlier this season.  Zach Archer and Drew Kittelson each added 10 points in the win for the Blossoms, while Parker Vaith chipped in six points.  Blooming Prairie moved to 9-2 in the conference with the win and 18-3 overall on the season, and they return to action tonight at home versus Medford, with the varsity tip-off at 7:15 p.m.