Hartley-Melvin-Sanborn set the offensive tone early in picking up a 66-45 win over West Bend-Mallard December 13 at Hartley. HMS enjoyed their highest scoring quarter of the game in the first and led 19-6 after one.
“I thought our guys came out and competed hard from the start,” observed Hawk head coach Naet Hoaglund. “We were aggressive and attacked the rim offensively which opened up some positive scoring options for us. We moved the ball well against their zone which created gaps to penetrate and credit our guys for taking advantage of it.”
The Wolverines managed only 16 points in the first half and HMS was up 19 at the half. “What I was probably most happy with was how we came out and defended for the first two quarters,” remarked Hoaglund. “It was probably some of the best defense we had played up until that point in the season. We were pressuring the ball, jumping to position, on time on our closeouts, and containing dribble penetration. I just loved how active we were on the defensive end, at least for that first half.”
The visitors from the Twin Lakes Conference were able to trim the deficit to 10 points midway through the third frame. “We came out flat in the third quarter and credit West Bend-Mallard, there was no quit in them,” said the Hawk coach. “They battled back and outscored us in that third quarter to make it a game again. I was frustrated with how complacent and sloppy we let things get. Our effort on defense was poor, we made lazy passes and had some unforced turnovers that really hurt us. Poor third quarters have been an issue for us this season. It’s something we are going to have to learn to overcome. We won’t be able to get away with that against the top teams on our schedule.”
HMS was led in scoring by Lance Berends with 26 points on 79 percent shooting from the field and a 4-for-4 effort at the line. He also pulled down 11 rebounds, passed for three assists and blocked three shots. Kooper Ebel added 17 points, three rebounds, three assists and two blocks. Jordan Ortega contributed 10 points, six boards, five assists and two steals. Keevyn Jacobsma supplied six points and eight rebounds. Wyatt Borden nailed a trey to finish with three points. Mason Brinkman and Travis Kamradt each scored two points. Brinkman also grabbed three rebounds and was the assists leader with five.
“I was really pleased with Keevyn coming in and having the game he had,” said Hoaglund. “He rebounded hard for us and contributed six points off the bench which was big for us. I was also proud of the defense that Travis and Trenton (Vollink) provided. I love to watch those kids play. They are tough kids who get after it on the defensive end. They are willing to take charges and get on the floor for those 50/50 balls. That kind of effort is contagious so that was really fun to watch. And Jordan continuing to be that next scoring option for us is big.”
Berends’ field goal accuracy around the basket helped the Hawks shoot 61 percent for the game. They connected on 28 of their 46 attempts. West Bend-Mallard was 21-of-60 from the field for 33 percent. HMS went 2-for-14 from three-point range and 8-for-9 at the free throw stripe. The Wolverines were 2-of-15 from downtown and sank three of seven charity tosses. The Hawks won the rebound battle 37-28 and committed 16 turnovers. West Bend-Mallard turned the ball over 10 times.
WBM 6 10 18 11 – 45
HMS 19 16 13 18 – 66