And the exhaustion was evident with every move and every shot the Lynx took.

“I’m dead. Everything hurts right now,” WCHS senior guard Noah McKinney said after he dropped 17 points on Clarion-Goldfield-Dows in a 66-63 victory that went right down to the buzzer. “But it feels great.”

WCHS (5-0, 3-0 NCC) played all but a few seconds of the second half with just five guys and it took a toll late in the contest. The fresher CGD (2-3, 2-2 NCC) overcame a 12-point third-quarter deficit and eventually drew even at 61 with 30 seconds remaining.

And then Big Shot Moen made another appearance.

Jordan Tanner (14) reacts after getting the ball slapped out of his hands during the fourth quarter on Friday. He scored 23 points in Webster City’s 66-63 win over CGD. DFJ photo/Troy Banning

For the second straight game, senior guard Cameron Moen stepped into the spotlight at just the right moment, as his 3-pointer from straight on with just 2.4 seconds remaining allowed WCHS to stay unbeaten. It was even more dramatic than the 3 from the corner he drilled with 19.2 seconds on the clock that gave the Lynx the lead for good in a 58-56 win over Algona last Tuesday.

CGD had one last gasp to force overtime, but Rhett Darland’s heave from the Lynx side of halfcourt smacked off the backboard as the clock reached all zeroes.

“It was a gutsy performance by the kids,” WCHS head coach Marty McKinney said. “Our defense was nowhere near what it should be, but when you’ve played as many minutes as they’ve played and you’re going against the caliber of kids that we were, it’s tough.”

WCHS junior center Henry Hoversten didn’t play in the second half. Late in the first half, he stepped in front of the Cowboys’ Will Weidemann and drew a charge, but the collision took a toll on both players. Hoversten was woozy as he walked to the bench.

“He took a shot to the head and we didn’t want to take any chances with it,” Coach McKinney said.

WCHS boys’ head coach Marty McKinney (right) talks to his nephew and senior guard Noah McKinney during a short break against CGD on Friday. Noah McKinney scored 17 points in the Lynx 66-63 victory. DFJ photo/Troy Banning

Hoversten’s absence also left WCHS without an inside presence and Cowboys’ lanky and athletic forward Avery Harrington took advantage. He ate the Lynx alive in the paint in the second half and finished with 22 points. He buried back-to-back baskets late in the fourth that knotted the game at 61.

“He’s a pretty athletic kid and he’s got good dribble moves for being in the post like that,” WCHS junior Dylan Steen, who took Hoversten’s minutes in the second half and scored a season-high 11 points, said. “He was tough.”

WCHS had senior Jordan Tanner though and he matched Harrington bucket for bucket. Attacking like a rabid pit bull going after a slab of raw meat, Tanner got to the hoop at will on his way to a game-high 23 points. He scored 10 in the fourth quarter and also put up eight rebounds, three steals and two assists, all team highs.

“He’s our leader and he’s the guy we lean on when we need plays,” Coach McKinney said. “He stepped up and made the plays and pulled through for us.”

Moen finished with nine points. He was 1 of 5 from the arc before his game-winner. Tyler Bultena put up six points and five rebounds. Hoversten snagged seven boards in the first half.

DFJ photo/Troy Banning

The opening quarter was nothing more than a game of survival for the Lynx, who saw CGD race out to a 16-3 lead. But WCHS switched to a zone defense with a little over a minute to go in the period and that turned the tide.

Well, that and Noah McKinney.

After a 5-0 run to close the first that pulled WCHS within 16-8, McKinney got hot in the second. He hit back-to-back running floaters to make it 16-12 and later buried two 3-pointers to tie the score at 22. He had 12 points in the quarter, as the Lynx outscored the Cowboys 20-8 to jump ahead at the half, 28-24.

“My teammates found me open and I just had to make them,” Noah McKinney said.

“He’s definitely capable of having big nights,” Coach McKinney said of his nephew. “He’s a confident offensive player shooting the basketball and him stepping up and getting us going offensively was a big part of getting us back in the game.”

DFJ photo/Troy Banning

Steen scored the initial five points of the third quarter. The Lynx lead reached 12, 46-34, on a driving bucket by Moen with 2:02 on the clock.

Sam Urness (14 points) and Rhett Darland (12 points) also scored in double figures for the Cowboys.

WCHS will close out the pre-Christmas portion of its schedule at Fort Dodge St. Edmond on Tuesday.

Webster City 66, CGD 63

Friday at Webster City

CGD (2-3, 2-2 NCC) — Sam Urness 6 2-2 14, Bryce Tegtmeyer 1 2-2 4, Alex Machuca 1 0-0 2, Rhett Darland 4 0-0 10, Zach Martin 0 0-0 0, Will Weidemann 5 0-0 11, Avery Harrington 11 0-3 22. Totals: 28 4-7 63.

Webster City (5-0, 3-0 NCC) — Noah McKinney 5 4-4 17, Cameron Moen 3 1-2 9, Jordan Tanner 9 4-4 23, Tyler Olson 0 0-0 0, Tyler Bultena 2 2-4 6, Dylan Steen 4 2-3 11, Henry Hoversten 0 0-0 0. Totals: 23 13-17 66.

CGD 16 8 17 22 — 63

Webster City 8 20 18 20 — 66

3-point field goals — CGD 3 (Darland 2, Weidemann); WC 7 (McKinney 3, Moen 2, Tanner, Steen). Rebounds — WC 25 (Tanner 8, Hoversten 7, Bultena 5). Steals — WC 8 (Tanner 3). Assists — WC 8 (Tanner 2, Moen 2, Bultena 2). Turnovers — WC 7. Team fouls — CGD 18, WC 6. Fouled out — none.