Photo by Samantha Davis.  Russell-Tyler-Ruthton's Chase Christianson drives the lane in the first half against MACCRAY Tuesday evening in Tyler. Christianson led with 31 points in the Knights' 61-40 win. 

TYLER — Shots were falling on all areas of the court for the Russell-Tyler-Ruthton boys basketball team in warmups, which translated in game as it cruised to a 61-40 win over MACCRAY Tuesday night. The win, led by Chase Christianson’s 31 points, was the 11th consecutive for the Knights.

RTR built up a 15-point halftime lead behind Christianson’s 17 first-half points to set the tone early. Although committing a few turnovers and unforced errors, the Knights’ offensive consistency kept them in front the entire night.

“We all work really hard,” Christianson said. “It’s nice knowing that we can get 11 wins in a row, because a lot of people have doubted us after losing players in the last three tournament runs.”

Along with Christianson, Juhl Drake finished with 11 points while Sean Griesse added another 7.

The Knights have been making a statement this season, and only tally two losses so far. The team hasn’t lost since Jan. 3 when it visited No. 10 Hills-Beaver Creek and fell by 10 points. The other loss comes from its season opener to second-ranked Dawson-Boyd on Dec. 3.

“We had a tough week last week, so to get our groove back going, it was nice to get this one,” Christianson said, regarding coming off of two close wins over Southwest Minnesota Christian and Westbrook-Walnut Grove last week.

RTR started the game hot, and jumped to a quick 11-1 start in the game’s first few minutes.

MACCRAY won the tip, but Drake got the steal and made the fast break layup to get the Knights’ momentum going.

A 3-pointer from Gavin Schreurs, a field goal at the post from Colten Thomsen and a dunk off an inbound play from Christianson helped to bring RTR up 11-1.

Christianson was a consistent key player throughout the game on both ends of the court. After getting a block on defense, the senior went up for a shot on offense and got his own rebound for a putback, and immediately collected a steal to go in for another dunk for a 17-5 Knights edge.

A few minutes later, Christianson got back-to-back blocks to counteract two RTR turnovers off tipped passes.

“I played AAU [Amateur Athletic Union], and they told me to use my length as my strength,” Christianson said, who stands at a team-high 6-foot-5. “That’s what I’ve done.”

Christianson continued to block several shots throughout the game.

The Knights suffered a few turnovers in the final minutes of the first half, but noticeably fought to earn possession back and didn’t let the errors affect their game play.

“We have a ‘next play’ mentality,” Christianson said. “Don’t let the last play ruin your move to the next play.”

Griesse got an offensive rebound off Drake’s shot attempt for an easy putback to bring RTR to a 29-14 lead with 2:29 to go in the first half, and forced the Wolverines to call a timeout.

Out of the reset, Christianson got a pair of consecutive baskets with a 3-pointer from the left wing and a drive to the basket on the next play.

“I try my best to keep doing what I’m doing, and even if I’m struggling, I don’t let that get to my head,” Christianson said.

RTR didn’t score the final two minutes after Christianson’s buckets and MACCRAY got a last second putback, yet the Knights went into the locker room with a 34-19 lead.

The Knights came out of the half still looking to control the court and built a 20-point lead behind a pair of baskets from Christianson and a free throw, 41-21.

Offensive rebounding was another aspect that served RTR well. It earned several second-chance point opportunities through the 36 minutes and had two to three players crashing the board after nearly every shot.

“We have a strategy on who crashes and who doesn’t, but it’s also just where you’re at on the floor,” Christianson said.

RTR held its double-digit advantage the rest of the night, and didn’t allow the Wolverines to come within reach at any point despite hitting a string of 3’s.

A Griesse jump shot from the left baseline and a 3-pointer from Drake brought the Knights up 61-36 with just over three minutes to go.

Head coach Daren Gravley put a group of reserves to finish off the game.

“We’ll keep trying to build consistency and keep on moving forward,” Christianson said.

RTR (15-2) will look for 12 straight when it next travels to take on Heron Lake-Okabena-Fulda (2-13) on Friday with a 7:30 p.m. tip off.