Although George-Little Rock hung around, Hartley-Melvin-Sanborn led from late first quarter on in picking up a 48-33 victory over the Mustangs. The game, played February 4 at Hartley, was not designated as a War Eagle Conference game.
“I was really pleased with our defensive effort,” said HMS head coach Naet Hoglund. I thought we were really active and disruptive on that end of the floor. I thought we took another step forward on the defensive boards. We’ve struggled a little bit this season giving up second chance points and that starts on the defensive glass. I thought we did a nice job limiting those second chance points.”
Caden Douma grabbed 8 rebounds and Isaac Schierholz six. Jayden Leth, Jackson Vogt and Alex Billings each came away with a pair of steals. The Hawks made a third of their 45 shots, including 8-of-30 from three-point range. HMS was 10-of-13 at the free throw line.
“Offensively, it was a bit of a grind especially in the first half,” admitted Hoaglund. “George Little Rock plays with great effort and they were so quick with their rotations that it was hard to find consistent scoring opportunities in the first half. We started moving the ball a little bit better in the second half and that opened some things up for us. Jackson Vogt hit two big threes in the third quarter that kind of sparked us a little bit on the offensive end. Caden Douma had another good night shooting for us. He was pretty productive finding his teammates for open looks as well. As teams start to recognize his shooting capabilities, that will be important for us. I thought Isaac Schieholz did a nice job as well. He kept us on track and in the flow of things as we were struggling to find baskets in the second quarter. We need to find consistent inside scoring opportunities, especially against the zone. Right now, we’re too reliant on the three which is fine if they’re falling. Whether driving gaps or posting up, we need to be able to score inside/out to be effective. Overall, I’m happy with our guys and the effort they play with and the progress they’ve made.”
Caden Douma and Vogt shared scoring honor with 14 points apiece. Schierholz was close behind with 13. Kolby Douma added four points and Billings three. Schierholz contributed six assists and Caden Douma five.
GLR 8 8 7 10 – 33
HMS 14 4 14 16 – 48