Improving, but not quite enough

Point production by the Hartley-Melvin-Sanborn boys' basketball team improved last week, but the Hawks were still outscored in all three games.

Harris-Lake Park's fast start set the tone during the Hawks' 58-41 loss on Jan. 30 in Hartley. The Wolves scored the first nine points and led 16-6 after one quarter.

"We struggled to find rhythm offensively and had a few careless turnovers," Hawk coach Naet Hoaglund said. "Once we hit a couple of baskets, we settled down a bit and looked much more comfortable."

Eight straight points to open the second quarter gave H-LP an 18-point advantage and they led 30-16 at halftime. The Hawks cut the deficit to 10 in the third quarter and to 40-31 with six minutes left in the game. An 8-0 run put the Wolves back in control.

"Give H-LP credit. They hit threes on consecutive possessions that pretty much put the game away," Hoaglund acknowledged.

Individual point totals for H-M-S were Jayden Leth - 18, George Vargas - 10, Lawton Schiphoff - seven, Alex Billings - four and Zac Pearson - two.

"I thought our offense continued to make strides. Although we aren't seeing the ball go through the net as often as we'd like, we are getting the shots we want and are getting better ball movement," Hoaglund said.

Vargas grabbed 11 rebounds; Leth had six rebounds and three steals; Schiphoff had four rebounds and four assists; Pearson had four rebounds, two assists and two steals; and Kolby Douma had three assists and two rebounds.

Duane Ingham was H-LP's leading scorer with 21 points.

• Generals are too strong inside

Sibley-Ocheyedan had the answer for every H-M-S comeback during a battle of winless teams on Feb. 1. Scoring runs late in the first half and again in the third quarter propelled the Generals to a 68-51 win.

H-M-S fell behind 17-10 late in the first quarter, but only trailed by six late in the first half before S-O extended the lead to 37-24.

"I thought we competed really hard. We kept it within reach for the majority of the first half," Hoaglund noted. "We lacked urgency in a couple of our closeouts leading to catch-and-shoot threes that S-O was able to capitalize on. Instead of being down six going into the half, we go down 13 and it became a different ballgame."

The Generals maintained a double-digit lead for most of the second half. H-M-S cut it to 48-37 in the third quarter but S-O took control and pulled away the rest of the game.

"I thought we really struggled to keep the ball out of the paint," Hoaglund observed. "Whether by penetration or pass, we allowed the ball to get there too easily and they were able to convert."

Leth led H-M-S with 29 points and six rebounds.

"He continues to progress and is becoming a consistent scorer for us down the stretch," Hoaglund said.

Schiphoff scored eight points, Pearson and Vargas each scored five and Billings added four.

Schiphoff contributed six rebounds; Vargas had five rebounds, three assists and two steals; Douma had three rebounds and two assists; Billings had three rebounds; and Pearson had three assists.

Gavin Stanton and Sam Schnepf led S-O with 19 and 18 points, respectively.

• Tigers score consistently

Trinity Christian was a model of scoring consistency, scoring at least 17 points in each quarter during a 71-50 win over H-M-S on Feb. 2 at Hull.

The Tigers led by eight after one quarter and extended their advantage to 34-22 at half time. The Hawks were outscored by 11 points in the second half.

Pearson and Schiphoff led H-M-S with 18 and 15 points, respectively. Vargas scored nine points and Billings and Leth each scored four.

The Hawks recorded 16 assists on 19 made field goals. Douma dished out five assists, Leth, Pearson and Vargas each had three, and Schiphoff added two.

Vargas also had five rebounds and two steals; Schiphoff grabbed five rebounds; and Billings, Leth and Pearson all pulled down three rebounds.

Scoring leaders for Trinity Christian were Dustin Hoksbergen with 26 and Carter Westra with 22.

H-M-S remained winless at 0-19 overall and 0-9 in War Eagle Conference play.