Good first-half defense and accurate shooting proved to be a winning recipe for Hartley-Melvin-Sanborn. The Hawks were able to savor a 63-51 victory over MMCRU January 24 at Hartley.
“I was really pleased with our defense, especially in that first half,” remarked Hawk head coach Naet Hoaglund. “I thought we limited their motion actions pretty well. They like to run some cross screen down screen which really makes your work and makes you have to stay disciplined in your gaps. I thought our guys did a nice job of fighting through those screens and limiting their offensive looks.”
The Royals made 22 of their 51 shots for 43 percent. They were 3-of-12 beyond the arc and 4-of-11 from the foul line. HMS shot 52 percent from the floor with 26 hoops in 50 tries. The Hawks went 3-for-11 from distance sank eight of their 18 charity tosses.
Lance Berends’ night included 27 points, 17 rebounds and six blocked shots. Kooper Ebel contributed 19 points, 10 assists, seven rebounds and three steals. Travis Kamradt added eight points and three boards while Keevyn Jacobsma scored six points, grabbed eight rebounds and had two assists. Trenton Vollink’s three points accompanied two rebounds and two assists.
“Offensively, I thought our spacing and ball movement was really good,” said Hoaglund. “We were able to work both sides of the floor and attack the paint. I was happy with how we shared the basketball and played through our concepts. I was really pleased with Kooper’s ability to attack and score but probably more so his willingness to distribute. To have 10 assists goes to show how he’s reading the defense and passing when they converge on him.”
HMS committed 12 turnovers while the Royals turned the ball over seven times.
MMCRU 8 12 14 17 – 51
HMS 15 16 14 18 – 63